Charcoal and Acrylic
by dyingforsomefiction
Summary: Katniss is no ordinary high school girl. She can't help but wonder, however, if the boy from her art class, Peeta Mellark, might be interested in her as more than a friend. (In this world, she has lost her father and suffered other tragedies, but there is no mass slaughter of children.)
1. Everdeen

Disclaimer: I don't own, nor did I come up with, any of the Hunger Games characters. They are the brain child of Suzanne Collins. My brain just wanted to pick out a possible everyday Katniss, no hunger games, and see if her and Peeta couldn't work out the differences.

"Author"'s note: PLEASE REVIEW. I am new to the fan-fiction writing biz, so I'd really love to hear your opinions. No pressure!

Submitted: 4 OCT 2017

Chapter One- Everdeen

Ever since Katniss Everdeen had turned thirteen, Madge Undersee was the only girl she could stand to be around at any given time. All of the other girls, well, they were always emotional and Katniss always felt like an outsider when she was around them.

Katniss looked over to Madge, briefly, as they walked toward class, then back ahead trying to focus on Madge's new rant of the morning. Kat knew, of course, that she must not fit in because of her personality. She was decently certain that she didn't look or smell like roadkill, she was decently smart, and she wasn't a bad listener, either. Madge, however, was a girl among girls. She had no problem weaving in and out of that... group without any problems.

'Yet,' Katniss thought, 'Madge chooses to be around me for some reason.' Whatever it was, she was grateful for Madge. Other than Madge, the only person that seemed willing to be her friend was Gale, whom she'd known for eight years. But they apparently weren't on speaking terms, which was very frustrating, because Gale hadn't even told her why. He just ducked out anytime she came anywhere close to him in the last few weeks.

Katniss looked up, flinching instinctively when she saw Gale looking their way at the end of the hall. As if to prove her point, he turned the other way as Madge waved and walked away. Katniss had been friends with Gale since they had been little kids, and yet, all of a sudden, he had no desire to hang around. Kat was a little hurt by it, but she wasn't the type to beg people to love her. If he didn't want to be around, that wasn't her problem.

She looked up to hear Madge, her voice concerned, saying, "Katniss, are you okay?"

Katniss inwardly grimaced. Madge already worried about Kat too much, so she just nodded and smiled. There were two types of people in her world, Kat realized. The ones who listened a lot and talked little, like her, and people who talked often, listening when they needed to, like Madge. Madge didn't look wholly convinced, but Katniss guessed Madge knew her well enough to let her come to Madge if she really needed to later.

Madge, instead of pressing, continued on in the earlier vein of her rant. "I mean, designer clothes make no sense. Why would anyone want to pay one hundred dollars for a t-shirt?"

"Exactly," Katniss indulged.

They arrived at Paylor's classroom and took their seats. Their history teacher, Miss Paylor, had earned a grudging respect from Katniss in the past month. Kat appreciated Miss Paylor's obvious and refreshing military background. Miss Paylor, always straight to the point, saved Kat from the unnecessary effort of drudging through fluffy speeches to understand what would or would not be on the test.

At the same time, however, Kat realized that her efficiency left Kat with no room to dawdle or procrastinate. Paylor had a commanding presence. To Miss Paylor, history was not a slew of odd facts and random dates and names of humans that didn't really mean anything. Paylor treated history, surprisingly, like a vast and complex series of stories about a people that began to seem as real to Kat as Madge was. This, of course, made it vastly uncomfortable to study colonization under the clear cut understanding that Miss Paylor gave them. The efficiency was refreshing, but even Katniss had trouble not getting emotional when thinking about how it would feel to see Madge whipped or beaten, the have some foreign entity come in and completely eradicate the happy life she had known. Well, Katniss guessed, she knew of grief. Kat felt a wave of gratitude for her life, for Madge, even for her seemingly silly worries and concerns.

The bell ending class shook Katniss out of her head and back into the world. Lately, Kat realized, it was becoming increasingly easy to zone out, to not pay attention to the world around her.

When history ended, after she had waved goodbye to Madge, Katniss started towards her art class. Though she wouldn't consider herself much of an artist, Katniss was glad to be done with choir. At her high school, she had to choose an exploratory class. Sure, she could have chosen something more athletic, but dancing was not Katniss' top priority, nor was long distance track. She had chosen choir, because she had loved to sing with her father when she was little. But then, in choir, every day, she found herself inundated with memories of the two of them, in the forest, with the birds.

She thought of when she was four, sitting in her father's lap, in the midst of several redwood trees. She could still feel the sunshine on her cheek, the cool breeze in her hair. She knew that if she was cold, all she had to do was lean further back into the warm, protective embrace of her father. They sat for hours listening to her father sing with the birds to her.

She shook her head. She couldn't have another day, much less another year like that. So, she was offered art or home education. She remembered laughing at the very suggestion of home education. She couldn't, despite her best efforts, cook anything without burning it to a crisp. She smiled, knowing that she needed to cling to the art option, like Tom Hanks clinging to a volleyball on a raft. Art was the only option that she had, in which she didn't fail an exploratory class. How embarrassing would that have been?

Cinna, her art teacher, was a professional clothing designer, who seemed to be doing some pro-Bono teacher work. He had gone to this high school and responded to the desperate pleas for a teacher from New York or wherever he had called home before coming back to teach here. He had one rule. No Mr. Cinna, no, "Cinna, sir"- no formalities, just his name. Cinna, like Beyonce or Cher. Kat liked the sentiment. Cinna didn't make her use useless pleasantries.

She worked her way to her seat toward the back of the circle. Sometimes, like today, Cinna had the easels out and arranged in a circle for the convenience of his being able to see their work, but being close by for any questions that they might have had. Otherwise, they were just in rows, like any other classroom.

"Today," Cinna instructed, "is your day to explore any medium." He smiled, briefly seeming to look in my direction as if he thought of something amusing. "Of course, you are allowed to choose a medium that you are more comfortable with, because we do have a year for you to explore all of your options." He made a small gesture, indicating for them to gather the necessary materials. She thought of the redwoods, how they seem to ascend forever, going up and up and up in her memory. She struck out towards the the charcoal, not noticing the golden hair boy next to her.

In her rush, she bumped into the boy nearly head on, and instinctively jerked in the other direction, trying to correct the mistake. She would have fallen if he had not caught her arm in time. She straightened back out to see his deep blue-gray eyes searching her face.

"Katniss... Everdeen, right?" He smiled.

"Yeah. Sorry for that... umm... Peeta Mellark, right?" Katniss saw his eyes widen in shock. Had she gotten his name wrong? She had been pretty sure she was right. He smiled, leaving her confused. So... did she get his name right? The pause was just long enough to be a little awkward.

"Yeah, that's me." His body relaxed, Katniss saw, as she thought that he seemed to sound as if they had known each other forever.

She didn't really know what to say, so she just nodded, then made a small gesture as if to say 'You first'. He wasn't having it. He shook his head, still smiling. He pointed to her and said, "You first." She paused for a second, nodded, then headed toward the charcoal. Peeta seemed to go for the acrylic paint. Other than the basics, Katniss was still hopeless at recognizing the different mediums. Honestly, she decided just to get her charcoal utensils and stick to herself.

She carefully passed Peeta on her way back to her seat. She sat, putting the utensils to her left, opening up the sketch paper, and focusing on what she wanted for the drawing. Katniss thought about the way that the grooves in the trees fascinated her. No tree was the same, yet her brain screamed at her, looking for the pattern that had to be there. She assumed that trees, like humans, are unique, even if they seem exactly the same. She thought of the Greek tales of dryads, the nature spirits whose life force was found in the trees and other various plants. She wondered what she saw in the dryad in her redwood. She started to work, when Peeta asked, "Katniss, what is your favorite color?" The question interested her, not because of the question, but because of the seriousness with which Peeta had asked it.

"Is it green?" he asked, once again searching her face, like he was asking for the answer to a well guarded secret.

She nodded, turning back to the tree, when she heard him ask, "Like a lime green or...?" His question prompted a response, like he was trying to have a conversation with her. So, she said, "Evergreen."

A moment passed before she asked him, "What is your favorite color, Peeta?" Still, she was wondering was this sounded like a life or death conversation. The tone of the conversation had just seeped in quickly, and she didn't know how to change it.

Looking at his work, Peeta smiled, "Orange."

Katniss smirked, turning to him. "Like orange orange or...?"

He glanced over, then blushed and turned back, saying quietly, "No, more like the softer orange in a sunset."

She turned back to her work. Did he blush because he didn't actually want to talk to her? What he had said wasn't particularly embarrassing. Katniss wished she was better at reading social cues. Madge had given her some tips, but she was still pretty lost usually. They spent the next few minutes in a slightly more comfortable silence. Kat thought about the way she loved nature. Nature was dependable. Poisonous plants were always poisonous, flowers bloomed in the same seasons every year. 'Unlike people,' she thought. She added images in the grooves of the trunk, a young ballerina, a hand print, some ruler marks up the edge of the tree.

She looked to the clock and knew that it was time for her to get ready to put her work away for the time being. They had about ten minutes left before the end of class. She turned carefully, trying not to bump into Peeta, and when she looked up she saw him staring, some kind of wonder-struck look on his face. She blushed. For a second, she thought, is he looking at me? Then she realized, no, he's looking at my tree.

"Umm... Peeta?" She prompted. No response. "Do you... like... it?" She drew out the words in her hesitation. She was getting more nervous by the second. Why was he staring? "It's not my best," she rambled. "I was just doodling." She paused for a seconds, then went to walk away. He grabbed her wrist gently.

She looked down, and if she was reading him right, he looked... indignant. She tried to think of anything she could have done wrong. She ran through Madge's rules again. She had been nice. Check. She had apologized. Check. Confusion. Definitely check.

"What?" he asked.

"Uh..."

"What did you just say?"

She gulped. "I... uh... I asked if you liked it?"

He shook his head. "After that."

"I said it wasn't my best, that I was just doodl-"

"How could you say it wasn't your best?" She looked at him, seeing a slightly pained, slightly confused, and slightly frustrated look on his face, as if he was torn between all three emotions at once. She looked down.

"Katniss... of course I like it." She heard the smile in his voice. She looked back to him saying, "I love it. It's amazing, okay?"

"Okay," she blushed,"are you... mad at me?" She cracked a small smile.

He laughed. "Mad? No. I'm not mad, Katniss. I was just upset because this is one of my favorite pieces that you've done this year. I was upset that you couldn't see how amazing it was." He paused, looking curious. "Why ruler marks?"

She was shocked. "You noticed that?"

He nodded.

"Well, I was thinking about how tall she would be, her growing up and marking how tall she gets..."

"She?" he asked.

Katniss felt herself becoming self-conscious, which made her feel vulnerable. She didn't know how she felt about that.

"Well, I thought of my tree as a dryad, you know like the-"

"Like the Greeks." He smiled, looking at her with a huge smile. "That's awesome. I would have never even thought of that."

He looked like he was going to ask her something, so she paused, but he let go of her her wrist, as if he just realized how long he'd been holding it. "Umm... see you later?" He turned to put his things away.

"Wait! Can I see yours?" she smiled.

"No!" He looked horror-struck.

"Oh.. okay. How is that any fair?" She heard annoyance in her voice. She didn't know why she was surprised.

"Well, I can't show my muck to the next Picasso or Monet or whatever." He was joking with her, but somehow, she felt a little sad that he didn't show her. "Maybe later," he said, looking down.

"Sure," she heard herself say, smiling. "Later." She turned away and took a little extra time to put her stuff away, getting a grip on herself. 'Peeta is just a super nice guy.' She thought, 'He doesn't like you. Just accept that.' She bitterly chuckled to herself. She was a mess. She heard someone come up behind her. Maybe Peeta had forgotten something. Maybe she could ask him...

She turned around. It was not Peeta, unfortunately. It was Gale.


	2. Peeta

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters and I don't own your opinion. So, thanks to Suzanne Collins and thanks for reading.

Let me know what you think!

Chapter 2: Peeta

Peeta walked down the hallway, towards his locker, while thinking about the last hour objectively. He couldn't help but feel a little accomplished. He had finally talked to Katniss, he had finally gotten over the anxiety and had just done it. He'd been looking for an opportunity to talk to her for over a year now. Of course, nothing seemed quite as terrifying now, as it had yesterday or even this morning. Katniss had always intimidated him. She was stunningly beautiful, smart, obviously a gifted artist. He had had a crush on her for the last few months. Today though, he'd been surprised to find her so.. nervous? No. Shy? No, not that either. Maybe, the best word that he could put to the way she had seemed today was cautious.

He could feel the warmth in his face, knew that he was probably beet red from talking to her. It had been worth it though. 'Not to be rude or pompous,' he thought, 'but it is probably natural instinct for me to try to make the girl I like smile, to make her... feel safe.' He knew that Katniss probably liked Gale, because they seemed so close, but he thought that he could at least be her friend. She had been so nice to him today, making him wonder why he had been scared to talk to her at all. She wasn't super social, but that was okay. He didn't need to date a social butterfly, nor did he care about who else liked her. He was just going to pretend, to tell himself that she liked him. 'Even a little bit,' he thought, 'even a little bit could give me the chance to at least be her friend.'

Shaking his head, he focused on switching out the books in his bag, for the few that he needed for the afternoon.

"Look, Katniss."

Peeta turned to see Gale following Katniss out of the art room. Funny, normally they seemed like a cohesive unit, but she didn't seem to bite at his conversation starter. She just brushed past, storming towards the stairs. He now remembered why he had been scared. That glare alone, Peeta assumed, would make any man hesitate. Gale did slightly pause, before running to get in front of Katniss, walking backwards so that he could face her.

"Please just hear me out?"

Peeta decided, once they had hit the staircase, that he would follow from a safe distance. He needed to use the stairs to go to lunch anyways, he told himself. He knew that their conversation was none of his business, but his curiosity got the better of him.

Did she like Gale? Did Gale like her? Why was she so upset? Would he finally get some answers? Part of himself hated that he followed, but the other was racing with nervous excitement. Peeta had suspicions last year, when Gale and Katniss didn't go to the prom together, so he had asked Delly what the situation was there. At the time, Peeta was just interested in their dynamic as an outsider. He reached the stairs.

"What, Gale?" Peeta heard Katniss nearly growl in frustration. He had never been happier to be the third party in a conversation. Peeta had heard that Katniss was an archer, and right now, Gale was nothing but target practice.

"You think you can just shut me out for what has it been, two weeks, and then act like nothing happened? Don't worry, I won't force you to talk to me." Peeta knew that Katniss was in pain, but he could hear the rage, dripping heavily from every word. Even he flinched.

He thought, 'Gale, stupid, say something.' Then he realized that he had no reason to root for the guy, he didn't even know him. Peeta guessed he just felt a little afraid of what that kind unadulterated rage from a woman was capable of doing to any guy. He had known Gale was important to her, but how important was she to him if he just straight up ditched her for two weeks?

"I... I like Madge, Katniss." Gale's voice was hesitant, as if he was afraid of the outcome. Wait- Gale didn't like Katniss? He had suspected, but Peeta felt an involuntary surge of relief. 'At least,' he thought, 'I won't have to duke it out with her best friend.'

"You think I didn't know that already?" Peeta was nowhere as shocked as Gale, but he was caught up in trying to hear her next words. She laughed bitterly and Peeta wondered if Gale realized yet how bad he'd messed up. Delly was like a sister to Peeta. He'd made Delly laugh like that once and the fear of it still haunts his subconscious brain. "But more importantly, why does that have **anything** to do with you avoiding me? Did you just get tired of me existing? I'm sorry, but I can't help that." At the end, Peeta heard her voice crack, which sent him down the stairs. He wanted to give her, or more likely, him a chance to recover from what had just happened. When he rounded the corner of the flight of stairs, he paused when she met his eyes. He tried to make an apologetic gesture, like "Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt.'

Before he could move again, she had looked away and said, "Goodbye, Gale." Her eyes held a death glare and her voice was enough for Peeta to feel the chill, and he had only seen it. He decided to stay still as she stormed away, letting the cafeteria door slam behind her. They didn't need a repeat of this morning.

Gale didn't look so great, so Peeta walked down another step or two and said, "Umm... hey man. Are you okay?"

Gale looked up, his gaze intense. "You know her?"

Peeta just nodded. "Yeah, we have a few classes together." He tried to sound unsure. "I know Art we have together and I think English? Maybe math?" Peeta knew exactly what classes he had with her: Art, English, and Math.

Gale narrowed his gaze, "You like her?"

Again, Peeta tried to seem a little aloof. "Yeah, she seems pretty cool and her art is awesome." He smiled a friendly smile. Gale nodded, as if lost in thought. Peeta bounced on his toes, one, two, three times. Then he walked the rest of the way down to Gale, holding out his hand.

"I'm Peeta Mellark," he said.

"Gale Hawthorne," Gale said, as he reached out and almost seemed to try to cut off the circulation in Peeta's hand. Peeta got his hand back, which was nice, as he was fond of the idea of keeping both of his hands. Of course, Peeta, the baker's boy, usually hid his strength. So, while Gale was strong, he was less or just as strong as Peeta. Peeta's secret was hefting around one hundred pound bags of flour every day.

"So, Gale... see you around, I guess?" Peeta smiled, then waved to excuse himself to go get food. He could hear the rumble of his stomach. He barely escaped Gale's burning glare on his back, before Peeta was assailed by Delly Cartwright, one of his close childhood friends.

"Hey Peetaaa! Guessss WHAT?" Her excitement was a little like shock therapy to Peeta sometimes. Painful, but sometimes it paid off.

"What?"

"Guess!"

"What?" Peeta gave her a look that says, "Tell me so that I can go eat food."

"I invited Katniss to the party for you!?" He swore that he felt his heart stop. He pulled her to the side, so that they weren't in front of the cafeteria doors.

"What **exactly** did you say?" he asked, panicking a little.

"Well, I told her that I thought that you would like for her to come, then Madge said that Katniss would love to come, then Katniss smiled and said, 'Thanks.'" She smiled, proud of her accomplishment. Honestly, it was impressive that she had gotten Katniss to agree to attend a party. Delly knew that Peeta liked Katniss, of course. She had guessed it, only weeks after he knew about it himself. Delly smiled and he smiled back, feeling a little bit more hopeful. He looked over to Katniss, seeing Madge look at him and smile.

'Crap,' he thought. 'Of course, the first day that I get the nerve to talk to her, both of the best friends were on the case.' He hoped that Madge at least would take his side. He highly doubted, from the glare he felt on his back earlier, that Gale was even remotely excited about the prospect of any guy liking Katniss.

Delly laughed at his hesitancy, smiled, and waved as she walked off to join the volleyball team at their table. He shook his head, began to walk toward the food, when Madge passed and waved with a smile. He smiled back and gave a single wave in her direction. Maybe, all hope was not lost. Spencer and Ryan, the idiot twins on the football team, talked to him as they stood in line.

"Of course, there are a lot of hot girls in the school." Spencer seemed to have a one track mind today.

Peeta laughed. "Yes, there are a lot of beautiful women in this school." A few of the girls blushed, hearing him as they walked past.

Ryan wiggled his eyebrows. "Peeta, man. Why don't you have a girl? I know ten girls dying to date you. What gives?"

"Well," Peeta said. "I don't feel like dating at the moment." That was technically not a lie, because he did want to be her friend first.

"Uh huh," Spencer and Ryan said, grinning like the Weasley twins.

Peeta chuckled, getting his food, then said, "Well, later guys!" He looked around for an empty table, to see Katniss and a little girl sitting down nearly four tables away. Peeta had eaten half of his food in the line, because he was so hungry, so he kept the burger and threw the rest away. He thought about Katniss' dryad concept from earlier and smiled. She really was something else.

As he walked up he heard Katniss ask, "What's your name?" Her voice was so warm and affectionate that it shocked him a little.

"R...Rue," the little girl said.

"Katniss," she said, holding out her hand for a handshake.

Yeah. He was definitely not going to stop liking Katniss Everdeen any time soon.


	3. Katniss

To the people who have reviewed my stuff, I can't tell you how happy I am that you like it! It's been lovely to start writing again.

Chapter 3- Katniss

Of course, Madge had to go and tell Delly Cartwright, the girl who was so nice that she shouldn't exist, that Katniss would looveee to go to her party.

"Katniss, I know, would love to go to your party, Delly."

Kat held back the grimace that threatened to overtake her soul and forced a smile.

"Yeah, thanks." She, thankfully, was known to be a girl of few words, which gave her an out for not being super nice and fluffy when she talked to people. Excitement for Katniss, most fellow students assumed, meant that she said a positive response of any sort.

Delly cheered. "Yes!" Kat was glad that at least Delly would get enjoyment out of her being dragged to the party.

"Here you go!" Delly said, holding out a yellow star invitation, with glitzy edges and neat, cursive handwriting. "My address and phone number are on the back and the date and time of the party is on the front." She beamed. Kat could only think about how utterly exhausting it must be to be happy that much, every day, with everyone. It was a lot to take.

"If you get lost, call me, and I can help you find my house." She flounced away.

Kat turned around to look at Madge, once Delly was a safe distance away.

"Why?" Kat asked. "What could I have possibly done to have to go to this party?"  
Madge smiled. "Well, for one, I couldn't possibly go without you." 'Uh huh, yeah right,' Kat thought. "Two, apparently," Madge stated, wiggling her eyebrows, "Peeta wants you to go. Lastly, you owe me for the whole weird ..you and Gale situation."

Kat cringed. "Ummm... about that. I may have... hypothetically.. nearly have killed Gale before I came to lunch." Kat looked down at her pizza, her only escape.

Madge glared at her as Kat knew she would. Madge had perfected the Mom stare years ago, which was slightly concerned, but mostly disappointed, with her head tilted slightly down, looking at Kat over her glasses.

"Katniss! This is ridiculous. You need to straighten this out already. He is your **second** best friend, of course." Kat just stared back, already knowing that she was right, like every teenager in existence.

"But Mom," Kat drawled, "I would forgive him if he at least gave me a good reason for being such a jerk for the last two weeks." She knew that this was true. Madge would have known if she was lying. Katniss wasn't exactly good at subterfuge.

"Well, in that case, I am going to go find him and get this straightened out."

Kat watched Madge walking away, pondering about how absurd it was that Gale had not just come out already and told Madge how he felt. Katniss had known about his crush for weeks. It was hard not to notice. Every time Madge came around, Gale fidgeted, he had this weird puppy dog look on his face every time she walked away or he had to leave her, and the cherry on top of all of this, was that Katniss couldn't be happier for them. She knew that it might be a little strange at first, since they were generally the only ones to socialize with her, but it would pass.

'Honestly, though, how blind would I have to be not to notice his feelings for her?' Madge being blind to Gale's feelings was not a surprise, as every person is self conscious about their first love. Kat, however, was just like a sister to Gale and he knew that. His stupidity was frustrating.

She sighed, glancing around the cafeteria to see an empty table not too far away. She had already grabbed her small lunch before Delly had approached and now just needed a place to eat in peace. She approached the table and sat, laughing at the strangely uniformed grains on the fake wooden table.

"Hello?" Kat heard a small voice behind her say, feeling a feather light tap on her shoulder. Kat smiled, thinking of Prim, the way she became a little shy when she wanted something.

Kat turned, seeing a girl about Prim's age, with big black curly hair and chocolate brown eyes.

"Can I sit with you?" Kat smiled, genuinely, for the girl.

"Sure." The girl sat down and looked to Kat. Kat knew she should prompt the first, though she was not usually the one to initiate conversation. "What's your name?"

"R..Rue." The girl smiled and Kat was curious as to why someone so young was in thisschool. She shrugged off the thought.

"Katniss," Kat held out her hand for a handshake, and the girl took it, laughing when Katniss overdid the handshake on purpose.

"I'm in your art class," Rue said. Kat paused. Maybe she should just ask the question then.

"What grade are you in, Rue?"

"I'm in tenth grade this year." Rue giggled again, as Kat felt her mouth drop. She recovered, responding, "I'm in eleventh." She smiled.

"Yeah, we sit on the opposite side of the room from each other." Rue looked down shyly.

"Well, there is a seat next to me if you wanted to sit by me." Katniss thought, 'I wouldn't blame you for choosing not to though.' Kat knew she was not the best at making friends.

"Is the boy next to you nice?" Rue wiggled her eyebrows, asking, "Do you like him?"

I smiled, blushing a little. "That's Peeta Mellark. He's nice, but won't show me any of his work." I tickled her. "I think Peeta is a very nice guy. I am sure he wouldn't mind it if you sat with us in art."

"Of course I wouldn't mind, that seat looks lonely anyways." He chuckled as Kat froze. How long had Peeta been there? Rue looked at her, a silent question in her eyes.

"Rue, this is Peeta; Peeta, this is Rue," Katniss said, a little annoyance in her tone. "Tell him what grade you are in, Rue." Kat smiled.

"I'm in tenth," Rue admitted quietly. Peeta had a shocked look on his face, which broke into a smile soon after. "That's amazing," he said, but then inquired, "Don't you work mostly with clay and watercolor?" Kat was shocked and so was Rue. Peeta, apparently, had a way of noticing the little things about everyone. Kat found herself impressed as he continued deeper into the conversation with Rue. Most guys Peeta's age would have been annoyed by any conversation that they had with a twelve year old. Instead, Peeta, _super nice guy_ , had no trouble enjoying the conversation and treating Rue as his equal. Though, Katniss felt a little saddened by the fact that he treated her like everyone else. It was silly to imagine him treating her otherwise.

"What is your favorite medium? Mine is acrylic, the brightness of the paint on the canvas, the consistency of the paint." Peeta was trying to get her to open up, though Rue was a very shy girl. Katniss supposed, that like herself, Rue probably wasn't used to other students paying much attention to her, or treating her as a friend.

"Clay is probably my favorite medium," she said.

Kat jumped back into the conversation. "Really, I had no idea that clay had fortune telling capabilities. Maybe next time, I'll ask the kiln to read my palm." Kat smiled, as Rue giggled and Peeta laughed easily. 'Maybe,' Katniss thought, 'Madge and Gale are not the only people I could count as friends.' Her gut instincts told her that Peeta and Rue could be trusted, if Peeta stuck around.

Kat had relaxed, truly, for the first time that day, so when she heard the cafeteria door shut, she looked up to see who had entered.

Madge and Gale stood at the doorway of the cafeteria. Obviously, she couldn't hear what they were saying, but she had known them long enough to easily read their body language in the few seconds that she looked.

Gale was upset and seeming insistent on something. He always flailed his arms around when he got stubborn and was trying to make a point. Madge had the stern Mom look back on her face, and Kat knew that Madge was warning him to take it easy. Madge was always one for caution, where Gale had always been one for action.

Gale looked straight at her and Kat looked down, feeling her body tense up under his gaze. She was just starting to have a good moment and it only took Gale thirty seconds to ruin it. She sighed, knowing, by the look of concern on Peeta's face, that she had not hidden the disruption very well at all.

"Katniss.. are you-"

"I'm fine," Kat said a little stubbornly, looking into Peeta's eyes. "No need for you to worry." She could take care of herself.

Kat looked to Rue, who had taken a bite into her sandwich and paused, looking between her and Peeta, wondering what was going on. Katniss smiled, but not as brightly as before. "I'm fine, Rue," Kat assured her. Rue, like Kat's sister Prim, had a way of softening the manner in which Kat usually responded to others, born out of the protective instincts she had had for years. She looked back to Peeta, who for all intents and purposes, seemed to have gone back to normal, except for the little bit of worry that couldn't be ignored in his eyes.

Looking back to the doorway, Katniss noticed that Gale was already walking toward her, nearly halfway to her table. She sighed, not wanting to talk to Gale in front of Rue or Peeta. If Gale caught her sitting down, she wouldn't have any choice in the matter. So, Kat started to clean up her area and prepare to make a break for it.

"Katniss, I was wondering..." Peeta wondered, "if you would help me blend some charcoal into the piece that I was working on this morning." He nodded in the direction of the door. He was giving her the much needed out, and she was going to take it, even though she would regret the questions it was going to bring about later.

"Sure, Peeta." She nodded, looking to Rue to remind her of the offer she'd made earlier.

"You could come if you wanted to, Rue." Peeta said, with a genuine smile. Katniss reminded herself that it was silly to think that Peeta Mellark of all people would ever even like her as a friend much less as a ... love interest. She blanched.

"No, Peeta, I think I'll stay here," Rue said with a mischievous glint in her eye.

Kat smiled. "Rue, you are going to sit with us in art tomorrow though, right?"

"Yeah, Rueee..." Peeta drew out her name, pretending to guilt trip her, smiling the whole time.  
"You can't leave me alone with Katniss." He chuckled and Rue giggled. Katniss saw that jokes at her expense seemed to be a staple in the future.

Katniss stood up as she saw Gale coming into range and Peeta stood with her. The look on Gale's face was pleading and indignant, as if he had any right to be angry with her. As she went to walk by him, he reached out to stop her and she paused, looking at him to say, "Hey, Gale. My _friend_ , Peeta, who _actually talks to me_ , needs my help." She walked past him and the hurt look on his face, which made her pause, feeling harsh and a little guilty. "After school, Gale." It was curt and to the point, but she would give him another chance to own up to his mistake. After that, it wan't up to her to work this out anymore.

"Okay, Catnip." She paused for another second, taking in the nickname, and then kept moving. She wasn't going to feel bad for him until he at least apologized and explained why he had done what he did.

Peeta awkwardly picked the conversation that they had been intending to have, to fill her brooding silence.

"Yeah, I figured that you wouldn't mind helping me, since you're the charcoal expert." He smiled hopefully and Kat couldn't help but smile a little back. Peeta made her want to laugh, which she needed sorely on days like today. As much as he seemed to over-exaggerate her good qualities, it was nice to know that he had a little faith in her or her artwork.

They walked out the doors and she felt the need to pause halfway to the staircase.

"Peeta," she started, getting this out of the way now, "you don't have to be nice to me. I know that I am not a 'cool' person, so you don't have to be friends with me. I am sorry if I offended you by calling you my friend back there. I mean, I know you are some _super nice guy_ or whatever, but you have your psychotically happy girlfriend, Delly, everyone likes you, and you are super smart, so you don't need me around taking up space."

Kat sighed, relieved she got that off her chest so he wouldn't feel the need to be nice to her. She didn't want charity, and there was no way he knew her enough to really like her, so she was satisfied that this would solve the situation. It didn't.

"Ummm... Delly is not my girlfriend." He blushed, continuing with, "You think I'm 'super nice'?" He smiled.

"It's literally the only bad name I can come up with for you in my head. _Super nice guy_ with a sarcastic edge to it."

He laughed. "I know that Delly can be a bit much sometimes, but you get used to it. Another thing- why would I not want to be your friend?" His confusion was a little annoying.

"I'm not smart, I'm not talented, I'm not pretty, I hate parties and dancing, and I am not a very nice person. I am the exact opposite of you," Kat stated, gesturing towards him with her hand, as if him standing there was enough proof of of what she had said.

"You... "he choked out. "You actually... think...?" He seemed to be tripping across his words. He seemed to be in pain, which made no sense.

"Katniss," he said, some strange fire coming into his eyes. He reached out and put a hand on my shoulder, which shocked me."You are pretty and smart and so talented. Screw parties and screw dancing if you don't like that type of thing. But you, I can't, you can't possibly... I can't let you see yourself that way. It's just wro-" Gale stormed out the cafeteria doors, cutting Peeta off. As soon as he saw us, Peeta's hand on my shoulder, she saw Gale's reaction. Of course, Gale, the dumb boy that he was, seemed to think Peeta liked her like.. that, romantically. Peeta slowly took his hand away and moved back.

Kat processed the kindness of what Peeta had said and was genuinely touched. Out of instinct, forgetting Gale was there altogether for a second, she stepped toward Peeta and hugged him briefly. Peeta responded, hugging her back, and Katniss was a little embarrassed to realize how good it felt to hug him.

She stepped back, looking down. She rarely hugged anyone and they had only been friends for a day. Peeta had a way of breaking down her barriers, which she was not sure how to take. Peeta smiled a wide smile and she smiled back shyly, remembering how it felt to hug him. Hoping she wasn't blushing, she shot Gale a death glare, then looked back to Peeta, waved, and walked away.


	4. Gale

Hey everyone! :) I am having fun writing the story, so please have fun by reading and reviewing it. :) I would love to know what ship you prefer in the story, if you have a favorite.

Chapter 4: Gale

Gale knew that he had screwed up, big, but honestly, he had not intended to hurt Kat's feelings. Of course, that apparently, in his guy brain had led him to avoid Kat, simply because he had no clue how to tell her that he liked Madge and not her. Kat was a very private person, and up until two weeks ago, Gale had thought that they had more of a brother and sister kind of vibe. Then, by coincidence, he had heard a new rumor spreading around campus that Katniss had liked a friend. The only people that Katniss really hung out with were Madge, the girl he liked, and him, and he liked Madge. So, if there was any truth to the rumor, he knew that Kat would be hurt either way if it turned out that Madge liked him back.

He gulped and closed his eyes. He needed to believe that Madge liked him, because if not, he was going to royally screw up both of his best friends lives. Gale thought of himself as a decently smart guy, but ever since he had started liking Madge, he had been missing the most obvious facts about random things. Obviously, Katniss had known about his feelings for Madge all along, which made him a huge fat jerk for assuming otherwise. Also, Katniss, who should have been upset that Gale liked Madge, if the rumor held any truth, was only angry that he had kept her out of the loop by staying out of her way. He had realized before lunch that above all the things that he didn't need on his conscience, now he knew she knew and thought that he didn't even want to be her friend anymore.

Gale cringed. He sat on the same steps from that conversation going over and over the situation in his head, trying to make heads or tails of the situation, trying to think of any good solution to his offenses against Katniss.

First and foremost, he had held to the truth of a rumor rather than simply asking the girl who had practically been a family member for eight years. This was no small offense. He knew that Kat had a very sensitive heart underneath her tough outer sleeve. After her father died, Kat had stopped laughing the way she had when they were first friends. He saw her shut her heart away and close the doors to temporary people. Kat only opened up to people that she wanted to stay around. Even if she didn't really expect them to, Katniss was disappointed when someone she liked had no interest in being her friend.

She had been in choir last year and Gale had seen her battling the urge to break down everyday. Although Katniss was a private person, she was also an open book for the most part. She didn't hide her emotions or feelings and she stunk at lying about anything. A brief memory about Katniss lying to Gale about his surprise birthday party flashed in front of his eyes. What usually would have been an amusing memory was tinged with guilt and regret over the current circumstances.

Madge and Prim had meant to throw him a party and had forgotten how poorly Katniss lied or tried to deceive people. It was useless. He chuckled thinking about it, but had no real humor in the laugh. He was too worried. Honestly, he knew that Katniss was one of the most important people in his life, and sure, he couldn't imagine her not being there for the rest of it.

The second offense laid against him was that he hadn't confided in her, trusted her enough to tell her about his feelings for Madge. This was connected to the first offense, but because Madge was her other best friend, he was keeping her in the dark, almost proving the false assumption that she had, that he didn't trust her.

Nothing, of course, was further from the truth.

He sighed. The last crime he had committed was letting her walk away earlier. He had choked, hesitated, and when that guy had come down the stairs, Kat had fled, because Gale could tell that she recognized the guy from somewhere.

 _"But more importantly, what does that have_ ** _anything_** _to do with you avoiding me? Did you just get tired of me existing? I'm sorry, but I can't help that."_ _"I'm sorry, but I can't help that."_

Can't. Help. That. Gale felt atrocious, and was sure that if he looked in the mirror right now, he would be able to see the grief that was flooding through him at the moment. He hated being a guy sometimes. It was as if, when he started liking Madge, all other coherent thought processing capabilities had exited his brain and Katniss had received the brunt of the consequences. He had felt his brain empty of everything other than thinking about whether or not Madge could like him back, the worry temporarily blocking out all mental capacities, surely that was the only reason that he could have been dumb enough, arrogant enough, self-centered enough to think that Katniss would like him _that_ way, just because of a rumor.

Hands on his forehead, Gale leaned forward toward his knees, looking at the linoleum that cut off at the stairs. He heard the cafeteria door open, the noise smattering from the loud cafeteria into the desolate hallway, the door shutting and then a soft voice saying, "Gale?"

He knew who it was. Madge, the one girl that he liked more than anything, was about to see him on the verge of tears. What could he do? His mental voice, it seemed, was a man running around on fire in a circle.

"Hello." He heard himself say it to her while still knowing he was staring at the floor.

Bracing himself, he looked up, unable to put a smile on his face for even this girl.

"Oh, Gale." Madge looked at him with a sad smile on her face. She was gorgeous today.

"Oh, me, is completely right." He was pathetic today, and of course, he had to be painfully aware of it in her presence.

"Why have you done this to yourself?" She sighed. "I've been trying to think of any plausible explanation for what you did to her, and honestly, I'm not coming up with anything good."

"Trust me- that's not your fault. She would have murdered me if that guy, Peeta, hadn't come down the stairs." I looked to her. "Who is that guy, anyway?"

She shrugged. "He's in her art class. He is just a friend... for now." Madge said it hopefully, and my brain cried out, oh God. What if Madge likes this Peeta guy? Gale wasn't usually the jealous type, but to him, Madge was a very special person.

"Honestly though, Gale- do you like Katniss? Is that why you did this?" There was a little disappointment in her voice. For the assumed feeling or his actions or both, he couldn't tell.

"No, I don't like Kat that way Madge, I never have." He shuddered, failing to imagine what him and Katniss would even look like together. They would burn the world down in a week, both angry and both action based people. "I like someone else and I thought that Kat liked me."

Madge chuckled. "Katniss, like you, like that... riiiggghhhhttt." As Madge was saying it, he knew how ridiculous it was sounding. The concept that Katniss liked Gale made him, well, uncomfortable and he realized it was because he had been dumb enough to believe the rumor.

"I haven't been super smart lately," he said, "because of liking this person and I was distracted enough to believe the stupid rumor that Kat had a crush on one of her friends." He groaned, man alive, he was an idiot.

Madge looked at him, shocked.

"Yeah, I know, Madge," he attempted a smirk, "I am an idiot." He stood up, stretching to relieve all of the tension that he had been putting in his shoulders.

She was shaking her head, standing up, a dazed look on her face. "Who.." she blushed. "Who do you like that much that you could be so... ignorant?" She sounded a little breathless, her eyes a little hopeful, but a little afraid. She must have guessed that it was her, Gale thought. Surely, she has seen the goofy way that he had been acting around her.

"Well..." He lifted his arm to rub the back of his neck a little. "Umm.."

"Just spit it out Gale."

'Now or never,' Gale thought. "I like you, Madge." Her face shot up, an unsure look in her eyes. He blushed. "I really, really, really like you." His eyes flitted between her eyes and her lips. Before he could stop himself, he reached forward, his hand cupping her cheek and kissed her.

She froze underneath him for a second, then responded. He deepened the kiss, the victory in his head slightly outweighing his guilt for the moment.

He was kissing Madge Undersee. He had been thinking about doing this for weeks, so when he pulled back, he was grinning like an idiot, but still trying to search her face for any clue, any sign that she felt the same way.

She touched her lips, her eyes bright, a furious blush on her cheeks, and yet, shock seemed the most prevalent, for the moment.

"You..." She drew the word out, trying to find more words. "Me?" She asked, surely not aware at all that I could have liked her back.

He just nodded and kept smiling. She swallowed looking down. The smile slipped from Gale's face.

"Madge, are you okay? I am so sorry if you don't-" She looked up a smile on her face.

"Of course, I do. You idiot." His smile was back. He leaned forward slowly and saw her blush again, before he dipped to the side and kissed her on the cheek.

"Good." He hesitated, the guilt was back. "Do you see now, Madge, why I was worried, why I thought that I might hurt Katniss?"

She looked up, amusement blending with comprehension. She chuckled, almost a sad chuckle. "You really thought that Katniss might like you that way?"

He grimaced. "Really, I did."

"You are so screwed."

He put his face in his hands, making his voice come out muffled. "Madge, what if she hates me now? What if she won't forgive me?" He heard his voice break a few times, felt the mixed joy and comfort he felt when Madge put her hand on his shoulder.

"You are going to have to give her some time, Gale." She was always so cautious, but that wasn't how Gale operated.  
"I don't know how to wait, how to give her more time." He felt his inner voice screaming, unable to make sense of this awful fake imagined world without his best friend.

"She is not going to hate you, but you know Katniss, she is going to need time to get over what you have done."

'No,' he thought. 'This has to end today. I can't do this anymore. I can't have her look at me like that anymore.'

"I have to at least apologize today. Earlier, she asked me if I wished that she had stopped existing. It has gone too far. I have to act, I have to fix this." He felt himself going to the cafeteria doors and walking in as he said this. Gale's body was anxious, ready to act, ready to get this over with, and although Gale knew that it was going to be one of the most unpleasant, one of the most painful conversations he had ever had, he needed to get past this.

Madge had followed him, grabbing his arm. "Look, Gale. You know that I like you." She had a stern, protective glare on her face. "But I'm not going to let you just do **anything** to try to fix this. _You need to abide by her terms_. You know that you were the one in the wrong, so honestly, as her best friend and your..." She paused and he wondered what they were. They had not really had time to talk about it. "Your best friend as well, she has the right to be furious with you if she wants."

"I know that Madge. I even agree with that. I cannot, however," he clarified, "let her continue thinking that I am tired of her existence." He was looking over to Katniss, when Katniss looked up and met his gaze. He could see her body freeze and stiffen, even from the distance across the cafeteria. He had to fix that.

Madge's eyes softened and Gale knew that she was going to let him go talk to her. Madge let go of his arm saying, "You better be careful. That girl is deadly, fatal when angry." Gale knew she was right, knew that he needed to be cautious.

Gale began to work his way to her table, when he realized that the guy he had met on the stairs earlier was at Kat's table, as well as a little girl he didn't know. The guy, Peeta, was on his radar. The way Madge had told him earlier was understood now, in this better context.

He thought of their conversation earlier.

 _Gale watched Katniss storm off toward the door, not bothering to look in the direction of the person who had caught her eye, who was walking down the steps. He was more focused on everything that had just been said. He briefly realized that this person had ended their conversation, had taken away Gale's chance to recover and respond._ _"Ummm..." Gale heard the voice take a few steps and looked back to the guy. He was blond, with blue-grey eyes. Yeah, he didn't know this guy. "Hey man.. are you okay?" Gale felt a flare of annoyance, an urge to demand an answer to why the guy was so curious. Gale had brought her words upon himself, he knew that, but this guy was asking for Gale's frustration._ _"You know her?" Gale asked, trying to understand why recognition had sent Kat in the other direction instead of making her pause. What if she liked this... person?_ _"Yeah, we have a few classes together." Gale searched his face, looking for any indication of how close this guy actually was to Katniss. "I know Art we have together and I think English? Maybe Math?"_ _This guy seemed hesitant at first glance, but Gale, who had known Katniss for years, knew that she wasn't much of a social butterfly. She hadn't even mentioned this guy before, yet he knew the subject of the classes he might have with her? Gale's big brother instincts kicked in, launching his frustrations in a new direction._ _"You like her?" The question was half interrogation, half accusation. He focused in more closely on the guy's response._ _"Yeah," the guy said nonchalantly, "she seems pretty cool and her art is awesome."_ _Gale was a little shocked. She showed her art to this guy? She never showed her art to him or to Madge. He felt confused, wondering if in the absence of the last few weeks, if he had missed this guys invasion, letting him get very close to Kat, very fast. He was not sure if he liked the guy or not._ _The guy came down the last few steps and held out his hand. "I'm Peeta Mellark."_ _"Gale Hawthorne." Gale reached out, putting some strength in the handshake, as if to say, 'if you make a move I don't like, I can hurt you.'_ _Peeta had a brief look of surprise on his face, which quickly changed to a smile. "So, Gale... see you around, I guess?"_ _He seemed to be as casual with Gale as if he had known him for ages. Gale simply nodded, but he didn't think that Peeta had waited long enough to see it. Peeta waved as he walked away._

Now, walking up, Gale felt as if his suspicions had been confirmed. The way Peeta leaned toward Katniss, the smile he had on his face when he talked to her. This guy liked his sister, this guy liked Katniss, and Gale was already in a bad place with Katniss, which meant this guy had almost a free window of opportunity to get to know her while Gale had no right to actually threaten him. Gale was not happy and he felt his face shift accordingly. Katniss looked up, saw his expression, and rolled her eyes. He was halfway to her table.

Gale remembered that he was here to talk to Katniss, but the irritation he felt toward this other guy, well, made it hard to concentrate so he wouldn't offend Katniss on accident, again. Katniss, of course, and apparently, Madge, had no clue that this guy liked Katniss. Of course, Katniss would probably never believe that anyone could like her that way, which was dumb, but this guy... Gale felt like Peeta was hiding something up his sleeve. He didn't like that feeling. He was a quarter throw away when he heard Peeta say, "Katniss, I was wondering..." She looked at Peeta with a dim smile. "...if you would help me blend some charcoal into the piece that I was working on this morning?" Peeta smiled and Gale involuntarily paused. Charcoal. Gale grimaced, briefly thinking about Katniss' father, the ex munitions expert, the man who had a love affair with fire and explosives. This... boy wouldn't understand, but Gale did. His heart panged and he started to move toward her again, more determined than before.

"Sure, Peeta."

Gale stopped listening, rehearsing the thoughts in his head, trying to think of how to lure her away from Peeta, how to make her let him apologize. He would've laughed at the thought usually, but this time it was grim. Katniss didn't do well taking orders from anyone.

He was one table away when she got up and walked in his direction. He held his hand out to stop her, but she pushed it aside with a glare. She paused, then said with a false apologetic tone, "Hey, Gale. My friend, Peeta, _who actually talks to me,_ needs my help." She brushed past, but she must have seen the pain on my face, because she paused again a few feet away and said, "After school, Gale." Her voice was curt, but he would take whatever she would willingly give him.

"Okay, Catnip." He wondered if the nickname could make her turn around. He usually only used it when they were alone, but he saw her pause another brief second, her and the boy, Peeta, going forward to exit the cafeteria. Gale winced, out of sight did not necessarily mean out of mind for him today.

He paused at a table nearby, thinking over his options. They were going to the art room, so he gave them a few minutes headway, before heading out to go to the restroom, only to see his hand on her shoulder. She looked sad, he looked apologetic. How the hell had the punk managed to upset her in such a small amount of time? Peeta dropped his hand carefully to his side and had stopped talking when Gale had opened the door. Gale took a step forward only to see Katniss, closing the distance between her and Peeta, hugging him. Gale stopped dead at the sight of that. Peeta had been surprised, but of course, was apparently happy enough to hug her back.

Gale still couldn't believe she had hugged him. Katniss had hugged him maybe six times over the course of eight years and they were best friends. Gale did not like the speed with which this guy was becoming someone Katniss cared about. Even if they had become friends two weeks ago, this was really fast in the context of Katniss and her usual timeline with people. Katniss stepped back and blushed. Gale tensed. He saw the slight confusion on her face, maybe she had been wondering the same thing that Gale had. How well did she know this guy? Katniss then sent Gale a death glare, probably for any number of reasons, then looked backed to Peeta, smiled, and gave a small wave before walking off. Peeta smiled.

Gale tried to breath in deeply, but the question came out like a natural response when Katniss was out of range.

"Who do you think you are?"

Peeta looked to him, the smile gone, confusion reigning on his face.

"...I'm Peeta," he said, "I am just a friend of Katniss." He smiled again hesitantly.

"How well do you know her?" Gale heard the door open behind him.

"Oh. Hi, Peeta." Madge really wasn't seeing the best of Gale today. He was sure that he was right, sure that he needed to protect Katniss, to put this guy in his place.

Peeta smiled at her nonchalantly, as he had smiled at Gale earlier, saying, "Hey. You're Madge, right?"

Madge nodded and seemed happy that this guy had remembered who she was.

Gale took in the whole conversation, looking back and forth between Peeta and Madge, his enemy and his... well, the person he wanted to be his girl.

Peeta said, turning back to Gale. "Katniss and I aren't that close. Why do you ask?" Madge looked concerned.

"I think you know why." Gale felt himself seething, though it was completely unintentional.

Peeta looked to Madge for help, but Madge shrugged. Did Madge not see how obvious this guy was?

"I know you like her." Gale stared him down.

"Katniss is my friend, man. I barely know her. I may do a lot of crazy things, but even I am not dumb enough to think that anyone as awesome as Katniss would be interested in more than that with a guy like me." Peeta looked down. Gale didn't buy it.

"Gale," Madge said, "he's being honest." I looked at her, telling her with my eyes. I don't trust it.

Peeta started to back away saying, "I need to get to math. Later guys." He was running away. Gale sensed the red take him over and the next thing he knew, he had punched Peeta in the mouth, splitting his bottom lip, and he was panting as if he had run a mile. He lowered his hands, getting out of his offensive stance. Peeta looked at him like he was crazy.

"What is wrong with you, today, Gale?" Madge asked, her eyes blazing with anger. "First, Katniss, and now you punch her friend, over an accusation that you have no proof of?"

"She hugged him." Madge was shocked for a second, but then she shook her head saying, "So? It was a hug and she initiated it. It's more likely that that would tell you that she likes Peeta than that Peeta likes her."

She went over and looked over Peeta's face, then helping him to stand. She put his arm around her shoulder, asking, "Are you dizzy? I think you might have hit your head."

Peeta looked dizzy. His balance was off, Gale noticed.

"Look, Gale. Peeta is a super nice guy, so he might not say anything about this to Katniss, but I will if she asks what happened. So, I suggest you make yourself scarce until the end of the school day. You know she'll be angry," Madge noted, "and I think you need to get a grip."

She walked Peeta to the stairs, and Gale saw him take his arm from around her shoulder, gripping the railing on the stairs. "I think we should go to the nurse," Madge said to Peeta. Gale had no clue what had come over him, and he decided that he would ditch for the rest of the day, so that Katniss wouldn't have the chance to kill him in the hallway.

He knew it was bad, but it had felt good to punch something. He just regretted that the something had been Peeta's face.


	5. Re-Peeta

Oh my goodness, guys! I loved all of the reviews. It makes me so happy, truly, to see that you all enjoy the story and that you feel free to give me your opinions. I cherish everything you all tell me. It made my day.

Chapter 5- Peeta

Peeta still couldn't believe that Gale had punched him. He looked back over the past few hours and could not think of any reason that Gale would have to suspect Peeta of foul play. Peeta, of course, knew that Gale and Katniss were in the middle of the spat, so all of the death glares she gave him, and the way that Gale was flustered, were probably just based in a temporary argument. He laughed in his head, thinking about how.. silly it had been for him to see them as a couple. They were so obviously acting like siblings, that Peeta, feeling relieved, also felt concerned for Katniss. He knew that she would regret putting Gale through any pain, even if she thought he deserved it. So, Peeta decided, maybe he shouldn't tell Katniss about this.

Madge was telling Gale off, but Peeta was a little dizzy. Gale threw a really good right hook. He knew that Gale was strong, but because it was so unexpected, Peeta hadn't had time to brace himself. He remembered falling and he must have hit his head. Apart from his lip though, Peeta was pretty sure that he was just fine. He knew that his thick skull helped him immensely in these kinds of situations.

He started to say something, but figured that it would just push Gale even farther.

"First, Katniss, and now you punch her friend, over an accusation you have no proof of?" He couldn't see Madge's face, but he could clearly hear her frustration. Gale looked a little less like a rage monster, which was nice.

"She hugged him." Gale said that... as if that was some huge deal. People hugged other people all of the time. It must mean something, but Peeta wasn't sure what. 'Honestly,' he thought, 'I wasn't hitting on her. Sure, I like her like that, but I want to at least be her friend first.'

"So?" Madge seemed to be a little more hesitant. What was the big deal? "It was a hug and **she** initiated it. It's more likely that that would tell you that she likes Peeta than that Peeta likes her."

Peeta felt massively confused, wondering if he was just reading into things more than he ought to because of his head. He just continued to lay on the ground, knowing that if he felt dizzy there, he shouldn't try to stand up just yet. He saw Madge come, look into his face. She looked genuinely concerned. He was confused, which probably didn't help Madge at all. She offered her hand, helping Peeta stand up, for which he was immensely grateful. "I'm so sorry, Peeta." She mumbled it under her breath, like she was talking to herself. Maybe she hadn't meant for Peeta to hear and Gale didn't seem to have heard it.

Peeta opened his mouth to tell her that there was no need to be sorry, but she was already talking to Gale again.

"Look, Gale. Peeta is a super nice guy, so he might not say anything to Katniss, but I will if she asks what happened. So, I suggest that you make yourself scarce until the end of the school day. You know she'll be angry," Madge noted, "and I think you need to get a grip."

She helped Peeta turn to the staircase, walking slowly. When they got to the stairs, Peeta realized that she had wrapped his arm around her shoulders for support. He slowly took his arm away, beginning to lean on the stair railing instead. His dizziness was beginning to lessen a little, but he knew that he was going to have to go little slow at first.

"I think we should go to the nurse," Madge said. Peeta just nodded, knowing that he was in no shape to convince her otherwise. He felt his lip swelling.

As they walked, he saw Madge focusing on him, trying to make sure that he was okay. He didn't know her well, they had only met once or twice. Yet, he could easily see why Gale was interested in Madge, why Katniss was more than happy to have Madge as a best friend, as a confidant. Madge was a genuinely nice and caring person. She was a good friend by nature. Peeta was glad that she had Katniss and that Katniss had her.

"I'm so sorry, Peeta." He looked at Madge again, trying to keep from chuckling at her remorseful facial expression.  
"Honestly, Madge, it's not a big deal."

"Gale, well... ever since Katniss' father died, Gale has felt the need to step up, to protect her. He worries about her a lot, as if he was truly her older brother and not just her friend." She grimaced. "I'm sorry that that led to him punching you. There is no excuse for what he did and I hope you won't stop being friends with Katniss because of it."

Peeta laughed, smiling at the end. He grimaced immediately from the pain, but he answered her silent question.

"I'm really not mad at all, Madge. You know Gale better than I do. If he was doing this, even out of a misguided attempt, to protect Katniss, I could never be mad at him for that."

Madge looked surprised, then smiled. "You really are a nice guy, Peeta." She paused in the hallway, and Peeta, no longer dizzy, paused with her.

"What, Madge?" he asked.

"I know that he was wrong to punch you, but I have to say, it is impressive that she trusted you so quickly." She smiled. "I won't punch you, I swear, but I can tell that you like Katniss. I don't know how much, but I think that you would be a good influence on her. I can tell that it wouldn't be a mistake for her to trust a guy like you."

Peeta felt himself blush, while also being shocked. "Can I ask you a favor?"

Madge leaned in slightly, interest alight in her eyes. "Sure. Go ahead."

"If I tell you this secret, and you promise not to tell any other living soul, then I will give you any one favor you want, excluding hurting an innocent person of course." He was just lightly joking with her, but he saw her grimace a little.

"I swear, we don't usually hurt the _innocent_ ones. Fine, I promise, on my life, that I will keep this secret from every other living person," a mischievous glint lighting in her eyes, "especially Gale or Katniss."

He nodded, then leaned forward to whisper in her ear. "I like Katniss a lot, but I know that I don't know her that well, so I want to be her friend first. I want her to know that she can trust me." He leaned back, knowing how serious he must look. He did want to be Katniss' friend, for her to be able to trust him. He wanted to be a guy that Katniss could count on.

Madge smiled knowingly, happy to have her suspicions confirmed.

"Does that plan seem okay to you?" he asked, hoping that she would help him out.

"I think that plans sounds brilliant. I think I might even be able to help you out with that plan." She smiled conspiratorially.

"What plan?"

They both froze, hearing Katniss' voice ring out right behind them. Peeta tried not to look back at Katniss, suddenly remembering the busted lip, the Gale incident. He looked over to Madge, who shared Peeta's fears. How much had she heard?

"Oh, we were just talking about the English project coming up," Madge invented, turning to look at Katniss.

"Where are you two headed? Isn't math the other way?" Peeta heard the curiosity in Katniss' voice.

Madge winced. "Katniss," she said. "I want you to know that everything is fine, okay? Can you promise me you won't freak out?"

Peeta was dying to see the look on her face right now, so he lifted his arm to cup his hand over his mouth. He turned around in this thinker pose, looking at Katniss with interest. He could see Katniss' caution, but also her impatience.

"Fine." Katniss turned to him. "What is it?" She seemed to think his pose was odd.

"Well.." Peeta said, trying to think of ways to tell her without getting Gale killed. Honestly, they knew her better than he did. He saw her anger earlier. He didn't want to make the situation any worse.

"What?" Katniss asked, the impatience bleeding into her voice.

Madge took the plunge. "Katniss, after you left earlier, Gale got it in his head that Peeta liked you, because you hugged Peeta, so he decked Peeta in the face." Madge had spoken slowly. He saw Katniss' eyes widening until it looked like she was going to be speechless.

She looked, horror struck, to Peeta. Peeta lowered his hand slowly, revealing his lip so he could talk to her.

"Katniss, it's nothing."

The moment he lowered his hand, Katniss' eyes flared in anger. Maybe putting his hand down was not the best move he could have made.

"How can you say that?" Katniss spit out the words, half concerned, half enraged.

"He was doing it to protect you, Katniss. I can't be mad at him for that. Don't let this make whatever you two are arguing about any worse. You guys are best friends, it seems. Don't hold this against him, don't make it worse because of me."

Katniss' face scrunched in confusion. "Peeta, how are you honestly not mad at all? How are you always so.. so...?"

"Nice?" Madge finished, coming to stand next to Katniss, tilting her head, as if she couldn't understand it either.

"I've had worse," Peeta said, flinching as he thought about his mother.

When he flinched, Katniss walked closely, to get a better look at his busted lip.

"You need to see the nurse," she said, grabbing his hoodie's sleeve and pulling him forward.

"That is where we were going," Madge said, "before you interrupted us." Madge chuckled.

"Yeah, Katniss," Peeta joined in jokingly, "I can walk without you dragging me."

Katniss looked to both Madge and Peeta as they started to laugh, a scowl on her face.

"Come on, Katniss, it's really not that bad. Relax." He smiled as wide as he could without hurting his lip and she gave a smirk back.

"Okay, whatever, _super nice guy._ " Peeta laughed at that, thinking about how many other terrible things he had been called before, wondering how Katniss thought of him as nice or as a good guy.

"Katniss, if you want to go with Peeta, I can go tell the teacher that you both are going to get to class a little late."

She smiled, looking at Katniss, then at Peeta. He saw what she was doing and he didn't mind Katniss and him going alone.

"Yeah, Madge, thanks. Take good notes, okay?" Katniss seemed to be a little relieved that Madge was going to class. Was she really that worried about math?

Madge paused. "Katniss, I am sorry about this, I wish I could hav-"

"You have nothing to be sorry about," Peeta and Katniss said in unison, him assuring and Katniss scolding.

Madge smiled. "See you in class, then." She turned away and started down another hallway towards the math classroom.

There was a small silence before Peeta said, "Shall we?"

They walked a few steps and he thought he would give her a chance to leave if she wanted. "You know, Katniss.." She looked to him, listening intently, "You don't have to come with me to the nurse," he assured her quietly. "I'll be fine on my own."

"No, I'm going with you." She said it stubbornly.

"Good," he said, not wanting her to think that he didn't want her there.

She smiled, then looked down. "Look, Peeta, I'm sorry that I put you in this position."

He laughed. "You're joking, right?" He looked to her, then stopped when he saw that she was serious.

"You have absolutely nothing to apologize for," he said. "Nothing at all."

There was another pause as they began to walk forward again.

"You know that.." he blushed, "that I wasn't hitting on you earlier, right? That all of those things I said are facts, not just the way I see things?"

She smiled, nodding a little. He was happy to know that she believed him.

"Is that really what you think of me," she asked, "or is that just what _super nice guy_ thinks?"

"That is what all of Peeta thinks," Peeta said seriously. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, I just... I guess I just have a hard time believing those things about myself. That I'm pretty, or smart, or talented, or whatever." She put air quotes around the words pretty, smart, and talented.

He sighed. "No air quotes," Peeta demanded. "If you keep using air quotes, we can't be friends."

She chuckled. "Okay, we are friends, no air quotes."

He smiled over at her, then realized that they had reached the nurses office. He opened the door for her and she walked in shaking her head.

"Shouldn't I open the door for you? You are the injured one."

"Exactly, that means that since I want to open the door for you, it should be allowed, in courtesy of my injured person wishes."

She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right."

The nurse came out. "Hello," she looked over Katniss and then over Peeta. She directed her speech to him, when she saw his lip.

"What's your name and who punched you?" The nurse seemed to be in a good mood, so he thought he'd go for a little humor.

"I'm Peeta Mellark and I punched myself." She lifted an eyebrow in disbelief. "I lost a bet," he added, to make it sound more realistic. It worked, because the nurse just rolled her eyes and turned to Katniss. "What are you here for?"  
"I just walked him over here, because we have math together next."

The nurse nodded. "Well, I can give you both the time it takes for me to patch him up, but then you both have to go back to math class."

Katniss nodded respectfully. The nurse went back to get the supplies and Katniss turned back to Peeta.

"Are you one of those guys who opens car doors and regular doors and pulls out chairs and stuff?"

Peeta pretended to be offended. "What sort of gentleman, prithee, dost thou think I am? Forsooth, a knave am I not."

Katniss seemed to catch on, laughing at his mock outrage. "Forgive me, kind sir, no offense was meant."

Peeta said quietly, "Yes, I am one of _those_ guys as you would say. Being kind to people, especially to women, makes me feel better about myself. It makes me want to be a better person."

Katniss smiled briefly, then said, "You are the only guy I would believe if he said that. Gale tried that once with me, but he knows that I hate that sort of thing. It makes you feel good, it makes us feel... weak, fragile. I am no fragile little girl." Peeta saw the challenge rising in her eyes. "I am independent. I can open all of my doors and pull out my own chair." She smiled, but he could see the fire in her eyes.

Peeta simply said, in response, "I don't do it because I think women are weak." He paused, gathering the right words. He looked to the ground, then back to her eyes. "I do it because I think all women are precious. I want to respect that, I want to show them that I think that all women deserve to be treated like they are precious to someone."

The nurse came back. "Okay, buck up, buttercup. This is going to sting."

After leaving the nurses office, Peeta changed the subject, asking Katniss small things like what her favorite book was or what movies she had seen lately. The got to class and Peeta felt lost. Math, usually confusing when he was focused, was even more confusing with him being unable to concentrate. Katniss, however, seemed to look bored.

After class, he walked up to her, thinking that she wouldn't mind him asking. "Katniss, can I ask you a favor?"

She looked up, shocked, from gathering her things into her backpack. "What is the favor?" she asked, curious.

"I was wondering, if maybe, you could help me with math." He cringed and she chuckled. "I'm not doing that great."

She paused, considering the favor. "I will help you, if..." she looked down.

If... If... "If what?"

"If you could help me with English?" She looked a little embarrassed. Madge smiled, silently gathering her things a few desks ahead.

"Of course," Peeta said, automatically. He smiled a small smile. "That's no problem at all." He paused. "Talk to you about it tomorrow?" he asked.

"Why not in English?" she asked absentmindedly, packing her bag again.

"I'm getting pulled to bakery for the afternoon. My parents bribed the principal with muffins." She looked up, looking shocked, but chuckled soon after. He waved, saying, "See you in art tomorrow, then."

He walked out of the room, thinking about the day. His parents wouldn't be thrilled with his lip, but he could care less today. He was glad that he and Katniss were finally on speaking terms. He liked her a lot, but today, it was a little more than a crush. He knew her a little too well for that now. Maybe, the fact that he liked her more today than before, meant that it was turning into something more significant.


	6. Madge and Katniss

Chapter Six- Madge and Katniss

Madge was barely present in her classes for the rest of the day. Sure, her body was there, but her mind was everywhere else. So much had happened in one day, that honestly, Madge was not sure how she was supposed to process all of it.

Gale liked her. Gale had been dumb enough to tick off Katniss. Twice. Gale punched Peeta. Gale had kissed her. He was such a good kisser. 'Granted,' she thought, 'it wasn't as if I've kissed anyone else to have any kind of decent comparison.' Gale... liked her. The way he had looked at her earlier today, like he had won some grand prize right after he kissed her. It had left her speechless. Then, the silly boy jumped the gun, afraid she didn't like him, which was utterly ridiculous. Besides Katniss, every girl in this school had been interested in Gale romantically at least one point in their high school years. When they had went to prom last year as friends, her, Gale, and Katniss, Madge had nearly drooled at the sight of him in a tuxedo.

But, now, of course, she couldn't just have a normal day of easy, breezy daydreams, because Gale had freaked out and punched Peeta in the face. She had thought that he was out of his mind a little, believing that rumor about Katniss, but once he had punched Peeta, she seriously wondered what had gotten into Gale over the last couple of weeks.

She liked Gale, a lot. More than a lot. BUT, she knew that she had to be on Katniss' side for this one. Gale was completely in the wrong for punching Peeta, but if he hadn't, would Peeta freaking Mellark, the other school heartthrob, have told her that he liked Katniss. She was blown away. The girl that she had had to give instructions to for interacting with other more social human beings had managed to garner to the attention of the other boy that practically every girl in the school was obsessed with, beside Gale. She knew that Peeta must see how beautiful, smart, and talented Katniss was. but it was amazing that he had even gotten her to open up to him at all. He had told Delly to invite Katniss Everdeen, the school outcast, to a party, because he thought that she would "have fun". That boy had a lot to learn, and fast, before Katniss realized that if she got rid of him, she would have no more parties to attend for a while.

Madge couldn't help but smile, thinking about the sweet way that Peeta had worried about Katniss and Gale, how he didn't want to make things any worse for Katniss, because he knew that she and Gale were close.

That boy, Peeta, he had a way with words. What was it he had said? That he couldn't be mad with Gale if his intention had been to protect Katniss. Even as far as boys went, this one seemed hopeless. But if Gale had been as hopelessly attracted to her as he had said, and Madge knew social cues. it was going to take massive, coordinated strikes to get Katniss to realize that Peeta liked her. She didn't really know if Katniss liked Peeta, given that Katniss' herself probably had no clue. Knowing Katniss, she probably thought that it was impossible for a boy like that to like her. Madge knew that usually, girls were dead wrong about that sort of thing, when their minds became so absolute. Madge smiled, thinking to herself about how amazing it would be, her at prom with Gale, and Peeta arriving with Katniss. If Peeta and Katniss did get together, they were going to be some sort of celebrity level good looking couple. She sighed, knowing that Gale probably deserved someone prettier than her, with her glasses, and her librarian based wardrobe. He was so adventurous, and what was she? Cautious, like nobody would even believe. Gale helped her to take chances, but she had thought that she had slipped into some kind of daydream when he had kissed her earlier that day. She couldn't blame herself for taking a second to realize that it was real after he had stopped kissing her. He was Gale Hawthorne, after all. She had only been crushing on him for a few... months.

She sighed. It was bad enough that so much drama was already flowing through her thoughts today, but that it wasn't even over. Honestly, the day had made her feel as if she had been dropped into some kind of dramatic TV show. It had been exhausting. When the last bell rang, Madge begrudgingly got out of her seat, gathering her things. The two people that she cared about most in the world needed to get a grip and stop this foolishness. It was getting hard to keep track of all of the people that needed some sort of mediation. She gulped, walking outside.

* * *

Katniss walked out right after her. Madge felt Katniss come a stop beside her, while Madge mentally prepared herself to keep the peace as much as possible this afternoon. She felt her heart catch as she saw Gale walking up to them, not to far away, smiling at her, which made her blush, remembering all of the things that had happened between them. She wondered if that had been a one time thing, the time gap making her doubt herself. What were she and Gale to each other now? Were they dating? Were they boyfriend and girlfriend?

"Hello, Katniss, Madge." His smile had vanished and a hesitant, but concerned look came over his face. Let the battle commence.

Katniss, of course, had known that this was going to come, knew that he was going to talk to her after school.

"Hello... Gale." She heard her frustration, but honestly, felt a little numb. All she had been able to think about was Peeta's response, about Peeta telling her that her and Gale were best friends. Him telling her that nothing she get more heated between her and Gale just because he socked Peeta in the mouth.

Peeta was... something else. Peeta's words, fresh in her mind, made Katniss soften a little the more Gale began to talk.

"I'm sorry, Katniss." He looked terrible. Katniss felt her heart pang with guilt about the way that she had treated him earlier that day. She knew she had been wrong to taunt him, but she was upset that she had felt sorry for him. That she had felt more sorry to the guy who was supposed to be her best friend, who had wronged her, than he seemed to feel toward her.

Now, however, Katniss knew that she had been wrong to assume that. That she had made assumptions about Gale and that she had let the anger and the hurt get the best of her.

"Katniss, I know that I've hurt you these past couple of weeks, but I only did that because I didn't want to hurt you." She saw Gale swallow and look down. "I know that you may not believe me, but with everything going on between Madge and I, I heard a rumor.. and I believed it."

Katniss felt confused. "You and Madge?" She looked and saw Madge, furiously flushed, and Gale with a softer happy look in her eyes. "Oh, wow. That's great, Gale." She felt the words come out stale. She was truly happy for them, but it was awkward to congratulate the person that you are furious with for the time being.

She paused. "Wait, what rumor?" Kat knew that she was oblivious to such things. She paid no attention to what other people were saying, in restrooms or as she passed them in the lunch room or the hallway.

Gale swallowed again, the penitent look back on his face. "I heard that you had feelings for a friend, and well, you only really hang out with Madge... and me."

Katniss wanted to go up and slap Gale in the head, but she restrained herself. "Well," she said, harshly laughing, "that was dumb."

Gale just nodded, continuing, "And, I know you would never think so Katniss, but I got worried about that guy, Peeta, liking you. Two weeks ago, I didn't even know he existed and today you hugged him." Her face must have shown confusion, because Gale began to clarify further. "Katniss, you never really hug someone like that unless you trust them, unless you are close to them." He looked down. "I wanted to protect you from this guy, who likes you but obviously won't own up to it."

* * *

Madge had been listening and it was going well so far. She saw Katniss, processing the information, but was surprisingly calm. Madge was trying to give Gale a look that said "drop it" when he kept going on and on about Peeta liking Katniss, as if it was some sort of bad thing. Honestly, the boy seemed to be clueless, missing all of her signals.

Katniss paused after Gale had confessed that he was trying to protect her from Peeta. Then, out of nowhere, she started really laughing, so hard she was nearly crying.

"Katniss? What are you..?"

"I... you think... that .. Peeta.." She burst out in laughter again. Gale was getting a little frustrated so Madge tried to explain, to tell Gale what Katniss didn't have enough breath for at the moment.

"She thinks it is .. funny.. that you think Peeta is a threat." Katniss laughed again. "She thinks it is hilarious that you think that Peeta would like her like that, that he would have hit on her." Madge chuckled, knowing how wrong Katniss was, but glad to see that Gale wasn't going to completely ruin everything for Peeta. 'At least this gives Peeta a chance to be good friends with her first,' Madge thought. Her best friend, however, was blind. Katniss couldn't see that Peeta liked her? She laughed a little more, both at her mental conversation and because Katniss' laughter was a little contagious.

Gale looked at Madge, and Madge knew that he must think it was odd that she couldn't see Peeta liking Katniss either. For the time, Madge was just going to have to roll with it. Katniss started breathing again and said, "Honestly, Gale. Peeta is so nice and every stinking girl in this place likes him. He could have anyone, he'd never pick me." Katniss' eyes grew sad for a moment, then she began to chuckle.

"I forgive you, Gale, because apparently liking Madge made you lose your mind." She guffawed again, while Gale reluctantly smiled. He must be glad that she was not mad at him anymore.

"Hey!" Madge yelled in mock outrage. "I don't cause insanity."

"Hate to break it to you Madge, but I think you might if Gale is any indication." She chuckled. "Of course, I am relieved to know that I can start cracking out all of the puppy dog look jokes that I have been working on for Gale. Oh, and," she paused, suddenly dead serious, "if he wants, Peeta gets a free swing."

Gale, thank goodness, just nodded.

"If you ever, and I do mean ever hurt him again, without asking me first," Katniss' voice had turned cold. "I will end you." Then she started smiling again, saying, "I think I'll give you looovveeebirds a little time alone. Madge," Katniss looked to her. "I expect details. How could you not tell me?"

Madge just laughed, blushing. "I'll have a report for you by tonight," Madge said, feeling relieved that the day was almost over.

* * *

Katniss knew, given the circumstances, that she should be happy to have Gale back, to be friends with everyone again. But one last thing began to weigh on her conscience.

"Gale!" She called his name as he and Madge started to walk away. "I am sorry about earlier. I was mad. I.. I am sorry for hurting you like that, it was wrong." She looked down, knowing that she would feel better when she walked away. "I was upset, because... you are like my brother. Then, out of nowehere, you wouldn't even talk to me. I just.. it hurt a lot more than I thought it would. I was upset because... I rely on you a lot. I need you." She looked up and saw the shocked look on his face. "Never do that ever again," she said quietly. "Please."

Gale broke away from Madge and strode over to her immediately, hugging her tightly on the spot. "I care about you too, Katniss. I am so, so sorry that I hurt you. I will never," he pulled away to look at me, "never do that ever again." She knew that he was telling the truth, she could hear the sincerity in his voice.

She just stepped back, smiling a little to herself. "Good. See you both tomorrow."

She turned and walked toward the city bus stop, trying to think through the day. Gale and Madge, she understood. Instead her mind kept coming back to Peeta. Peeta this morning in the art room, Peeta at lunch, Peeta telling her that she was smart and pretty and talented, Peeta getting punched because of her, feeling no anger, and lastly, Peeta asking her for help on his math homework. The guy, well, frankly was too good. Katniss didn't get it. Didn't he realize that she had only been in her life for one real day of friendship and already she had gotten him harassed and socked in the jaw, as well as the fact that he seemed to believe that he was obligated to be her friend, to spend time with her. She thought that he was a great guy, but she didn't understand how he could be so light and breezy all of the time. It was like nothing ever got to him.

She wondered how that idea, of them being friends, how that was going to progress over the next week, the next month. She wondered if he would realize that she was a social pariah, if he would become bored by her, leaving her behind to spend more time with Delly or other more.. social people. She knew that Peeta seemed to love parties and big groups of people, where she could not stand to be around so many people at the same time. She didn't like feeling as if she couldn't hear her own thoughts or having to be nice and make small talk with people who weren't even really interested in her, just interested in having a good time.

Peeta, Katniss decided, was going to be a good friend, if she decided to let that happen. Should she even try to fight it? Peeta was a good guy, so it is not because of him that she would stay away, but rather because of herself.

She had always thought that Peeta was attractive and watching him today with Rue, well, she had truly been impressed. In her head, she pictured what it would be like for Peeta to meet Prim, for them to laugh at her expense, for him to prod conversation out of her sister the way that he had with Rue. This hope, or whatever she should call it, was the reason that she wasn't positive that being friends with Peeta was a good idea.

She climbed on the bus, hearing the coins click into the collection at the front, then worked her way back to her seat, thinking about what she could say that might make Peeta give up on wanting to be friends with her, which lasted her until the bus arrived at her stop. She gathered her things, walking unfocused toward her house. She heard someone calling her name and she focused on the voice. She looked up, toward the sound, and saw her mother, with a somewhat impatient expression on her face.

"Good, you are home. Prim is inside. I have to go to work." "Sure, Mom." I wasted no time on fluffy speeches. Ever since Dad had died, her mom could barely even pretend to want a personal relationship. Katniss knew that her grief had been hard to deal with, but it had forced Katniss to become the parent. To make sure that her mom ate, that the bills were paid, that her mom was ready for work and that Prim did her homework. She became the person who ran the home. Recently, her mother seemed to have become more herself, but Katniss didn't trust her to run the house all of these years later.

That, of course, created tension between them that seeped out in every interaction, unless Prim was within earshot. She must be in her room, otherwise Mom would be pretending to care in a more convincing way. "Did you get groceries today?"

"No, I left the food stamps card on the table. You choose what to get, since you know about that more than I do." Katniss heard the scorn in her mother's voice.

"Maybe if you hadn't passed the job on to me, then you wouldn't have anything to complain about. Have a good shift," Katniss said, in no mood to put up with the many issues that she had with her mother.

Katniss walked in the door. "Prim!" she called as the door shut behind her. Prim emerged from her room saying, "Mom left for work."

"I know," Katniss said. "Ready to go shopping? You can pick the store this time." Katniss picked up the card off of the table and walked to hug Prim.

"Okay... let's go to the grocery store Dad used to love." It was a little further than the nearest Walmart, but she knew it had been a while since they had been able to go.

"Yay!" Prim exclaimed. "Should we get party balloons while we are there?" She smiled.

Katniss shrugged. "Why would we need party balloons?" She couldn't think of anything coming up soon.

"For you, silly. Your birthday is in a few weeks, so shouldn't we start planning the party?"

"You wish, Prim. I don't do parties or gifts, remember?"

She sighed, knowing this was hardly the last time she would have to deny her sister the pleasure of throwing her a party they couldn't afford. Prim didn't have to know that they didn't have the money, though. For Prim, it could just remain an issue of Katniss and her "absurd" aversion to parties.


	7. Madge

Hey everyone! I know that I have been updating a lot, and I hope you don't mind. I have needed something to occupy my time. Hope you enjoy!

Also, I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR ANYTHING YOU HAVE TO SAY, from suggestions for the story, to favorite parts of the chapter, or whatever thoughts pop up. :)

Chapter 7- Madge

She breathed in and out, trying to calm herself down a little bit before she called Katniss, knowing that when she got worked up like this, Katniss always assumed the worst. In and out, in and out, in and-

The phone rang. Madge's brow bunched in confusion. Who would be calling her? It wasn't like Katniss and her had set a specific time. Regardless, Madge picked up her cell and picked up, seeing the Everdeen house phone number. This made sense, considering that Katniss didn't have a cell phone.

"Hello?" she asked, wondering who would be on the other side of the phone, Katniss or.. maybe Prim, she realized.

"Hello." She heard Prim, whispering, which made no sense. "We have to try this year, I don't care how much she hates them. She needs a," Prim paused, as if she was looking around her, afraid someone would overhear her hushed whispers. "A p-a-r-t-y." Madge laughed, knowing already, someone new who would be all too willing to help them with the change.

"Her birthday is on the thirteenth, right?" Madge asked.

"Uh huh," Prim whispered back. Though, Madge knew, of course, that Prim had a reasonable fear. Katniss hated regular parties, much less ones that were thrown specifically for her. Madge thought of people that she could invite, of throwing the surprise party the Friday after her birthday, in disguise as a sleepover. She would tell Katniss that they were supposed to go out to dinner with her Dad, so look a little nice, just in case.

The pieces could fall into place, she just needed to make sure that she could enlist Gale and Peeta's cooperation, then the party would be a sure thing. Of course, apparently, Peeta was going to have Kat start tutoring him. When Kat had asked for help with English that day, she could just imagine the two of them reading Shakespeare's sonnets together, gazing deeply into each others' eyes.

She chuckled to herself. "Okay, Prim." She knew that she needed to talk to Katniss anyways, so she told Prim to talk as if she was going to throw Katniss a party at their house soon enough." She could feel the mischievous glint in Prim's eyes through the phone.

Prim raised her voice, "So Madge, I was wondering... are you free next Friday? It is a few days early, but Katniss told me that we could throw her a party!" She overdid it a little, in Madge's opinion, but Kat's response was worth it all. Madge could hear Kat's approach, the no...nooooo... NOOOOOOOO. She heard Prim laughing, Kat grabbing the phone and saying, "I'm not having a party."

Madge mockingly said, "You aren't? But Prim promised. Oh no! I've already invited the whole school! Whatever will we do? We can't cancel now?" She heard Kat nearly growling on the other end and she laughed. "I'm just kidding, Katniss."

"You had better be kidding," Katniss grumbled.

"What's so bad about a party, Katniss?" she joked. "You would just be the center of attention and get lots of gifts and we could invite Peeta, I'm sure he'd have fun watching you squirm."

"Ha ha, Madge," Katniss said sardonically. "You know that today should be enough to scare that boy away permanently. So, no luck there."

"Gale didn't scare Peeta away forever, I promise." Madge sighed. Katniss was already overreacting and it hadn't even been twenty-four hours. "He's a good guy, Kat. You need to give him a chance. He's going to be a really good friend." She knew that she was making the Mom glare, just like she knew that Katniss could see the glare in her head, hear it in Madge's voice.

"You don't know him any better than I do," Katniss said. "That nice guy thing is probably all just an act." There is no way that that would be true, Madge knew, but it wasn't like she could tell Peeta that.

"So... do you want to hear about Gale and me... or should I hang up?"

Katniss sighed. "Yeah, I want to hear about it. You know I do."

"Well... he kissed me today."

"When?" During lunch, after you left, when he dropped her off...

"When he told me he liked me during lunch today."

"Whoa, he is a bold guy, huh?"

Madge felt herself blushing. "Yeah, but it felt...amazing."

"It was about time that he told you."

"What do you mean it was about time?"

"Gale didn't tell you? I've known that he liked you for weeks now."

"How could you not tell me?" Madge fumed, even though she couldn't stay mad.

"Ha. If I had told you, I would've had to listen to you whine about how long it was taking him to fess up. No thanks."

Madge laughed. "Okay, you have me there." She paused. "What made you realize that he liked me?"

"Everything. The boy was always struck with some awful puppy dog look on his face every time you left and he stared at you like some mushy fool." She heard Kat laugh. "I thought it was a little annoying, but it only got worse when he stopped talking to me, because I couldn't just make him come clean."

Madge sighed. "Darn you, Gale." Kat chuckled.

"Is there anything else you want to tell me?" Kat asked.

"Well, after you left today he took me to dinner. He opened my door, pulled out my chair, and he paid for my food. He was so nice and complimented me at all the right moments. He is a really great guy," she gushed.

Kat chuckled, "Look at the world's most independent woman, Madge."

Madge glared through the phone. "Whatever, Katniss. It was sweet. It made me feel... valuable. Like... like I was special."

"Huh. It doesn't make you feel weak?"

"Well, it does now," Madge teased. "Geez, Katniss. Way to ruin it." She laughed.

"Uh huh, like I could ruin anything," Kat said. "I am pretty awesome."

Madge replied, "Yes you are, which is why you should let us throw you a birthday party. It has been years since you let us throw you one." Katniss hadn't had a birthday party since the one she'd had after her father died had fallen flat.

"You know that we can't afford it," Kat whispered, thinking that Prim didn't already know the real reasons she had for forgoing her birthday parties.

"Well, I can." Madge was the mayor's daughter, after all; all that nice home stuff and money had to count for something.

"I can't let you do that."

"Why?" Madge pressed. "I love you, Katniss. You are my best friend. You wouldn't owe me anything. I want to do it. Please."

"I don't need a party." Kat's voice dipped down in sadness. "I don't deserve one."

Madge scoffed. "Katniss, that is ridiculous. You, more than anyone I know, deserve to be celebrated. Why don't you see that?"

"Because Madge, my life isn't the important one. The important focus here is Prim."

"But Prim wants this just as badly as I do."

"Well, that's too bad. I'm too busy. Look, I'll see you tomorrow, Madge; I need to finish my English homework." Madge heard her frustration.

"Okay, Katniss. Good night."

"Night." Katniss said and then Madge heard the phone disconnect. She sighed. Maybe Peeta could convince her, where she and Gale were so often unsuccessful. Even if she couldn't see it, Madge knew that Katniss deserved so much more than she allowed them to give her.

* * *

The next day, Madge found herself seeking Peeta out before classes started for the day. She walked up to him, at his locker. He looked up when he heard her approaching, a look of curiosity on his face.

"I need your help." Madge sighed. "I need you to help me plan Katniss' birthday party."

"When is her birthday?" Peeta asked looking back and forth between her and the locker as he grabbed some of his books.

"We have a solid two weeks before her birthday."

"So, why do you need my help?"

"She..." Madge hesitated, trying to be nice with the words that she chose. "She is being stubborn, refusing to let me pay for the party, refusing for any of us to get her gifts."

He nodded, as if that made sense to him. "Ah, well, you know you can lead a horse to water.."

Madge smiled. "I need you to help me convince her that she is awesome enough to deserve a party."

He laughed. "I think you overestimate my abilities. You act like she is my best friend, instead of yours."

Sighing, Madge replied, "That's exactly her problem." This is all too true to be amusing. "She thinks that if she lets someone else pay for the party that she would need to pay them back, that she would owe them."

"Honestly, that doesn't shock me. She doesn't really seem like the kind of person that would welcome charity of any kind. She seems.." He hesitated. "She seems independent to a fault," he finished.

Madge didn't want to use her favor on this, she had a little something else in mind... Instead, she compromised. "If nothing else, will you at least come to the party?"

Peeta smiled. "Of course, I'll come. I'll even make the cake if you want. I just don't want to talk her into something that she doesn't really want. I can't promise you that."

"You'll make the cake?"

"Sure. It runs in the family."

Madge laughed, thinking about the look on Katniss' face when they told her that everything but the gifts had been free at the party.

"So. How old is she going to be?" Peeta asked, casually.

"That's a little rude to ask, don't you think?" Madge immediately responded. Men never asked a lady's age. That phrase had been mashed into her brain so many times.

"Umm... I was only asking for the cake..."

"Oh." Of course, Madge thought, she was an idiot. "Sorry. It was a conditioned response."

"I know what you mean." He smiled. "Am I allowed to ask the theme of the party?"

"Well she hasn't had a birthday party in years, so it needs to be something special."

"Years?" Peeta asked. "How many years?"

"Five." Peeta tilted his head. "That was the year her dad.."

"Oh." A new look dawned on his face, one of sympathy, one of condolences.

"I didn't know that it had been that recent."

"It's not your fault, Peeta, you haven't been her friend as long as we have. Don't worry about it; it's not like she expected you to know."

He nodded. "Let me know when you think of a theme, I'm off to Biology."

Madge watched Peeta walk away and couldn't understand the attraction. She knew that his personality was pretty great, but well, Madge preferred brunettes.


	8. Peeta, Spy Extraordinaire

**Hello all!**

 **I grow attached to my stories, the more that I write, but I can't explain how amazing it feels to share my writing with you all, whether you review or not. I am just happy, knowing that more than one person saw my story and wanted to keep reading. Truly, it's awesome. The chapter names have come down to puns for the system, but the chapter names within will tell you who is speaking for the chapter itself.**

 **Please, please, please keep the reviews coming. I am happy to hear anything and everything.**

 **To the guest reviewers, I love your insight! Kat's friends know that she is not a huge fan of big parties. They just want a chance to celebrate in their fan circle. As an introvert, I happily agree that being forced into the center of a huge party, even if it's not about you, can feel atrocious at the best of times.**

 **To malaynamonkey2004: Fret not! As long as you are willing to read, I am willing to write. I am so happy to know that you've been enjoying the story.**

 **Thanks everyone!**

Chapter 8- Peeta

Peeta wasn't a slouch. He liked to be busy, loved to do things with his hands. If he hadn't loved baking, he would have never found his passion for art. Peeta walked to Biology, thinking about Madge's request. He could understand, honestly, why someone wouldn't want to have a birthday party. For him, they had always been a charade.

Peeta's life hadn't always been easy, either. He knew that Katniss lost her dad, but he had always wished, up until recently, that he could lose his mom. She was cruel, abusive. She used everything she could on his dad, from insults to hitting to shutting him out if he didn't do what she wanted. His dad loved his mom, but it was like a prison almost. Peeta cringed just thinking about it.

The only reason that Peeta hadn't stormed out, tried to find something better, was that his parents were in control of his large trust fund, which he received when he was eighteen. The other, more personal reason, boiled down to his younger siblings. His mother always treated them like darlings, since between his father and himself, she was able to expend all of her displeasure. Peeta was happy to take the insults, to take everything if it would spare the younger ones. Though he cared for them, enough to stand in his mother's way of hurting them, he couldn't grow close to them personally. He couldn't help but feel the tiniest wings of resentment, wishing that anyone but her had been his mother.

She was the reason that Peeta fought to be kind and pay attention to what other people needed. She was the reason that he wanted to treat women as precious, as special people with fragile hearts. His mother's heart had been broken by her cruel father. All she had ever known was cruelty, so for a while, when she was dating his father, she had embraced the changes, embraced his love for her and his many compliments. But, instead of making sure that she sought help, she just let herself grow angry. Soon after they had married, and his mother had felt the ultimate revenge of leaving her father behind, he died. This took all of the wind out of her sails. What good was a vengeful gesture if the person wasn't around to receive it every day for the rest of their life? Peeta knew that inside, his mother must have a soul, but he could also see that, because she had hardened herself, made herself unwilling to change, that she would continue to be this cruel, wounded woman for most, if not the rest of her life.

Peeta had always dream of having the mother that would tuck you in at night, the one who read stories, baked cookies, and made the tooth fairy real again, every time that he lost a tooth. But that wasn't the woman that Peeta was born to and he knew that it was almost useless to do anything, but to continually seek to forgive her.

He had tried to tell his father multiple times, that he should leave her, that he didn't deserve to live this way. All his father heard, apparently, was that if he left his wife, that he wouldn't be a good man. He saw himself abandoning the woman he loved and causing her pain. Peeta was tired of all of the macho stereotypes. If a woman is abusive, she needs treatment. The man who has been abused shouldn't be treated as a weakling, but as a human being who was good enough to endure heart wrenching pain for the woman that he loved. This man, of course, believed that his was nothing, lower than nothing, and yet Peeta could see all of his goodness being wasted on the woman who was too bitter and cold-hearted to notice any of it.

Yet, if Katniss had changed so much, Peeta knew that she must have loved her dad quite a bit. He wondered what it must have been like to grow up in a happy home, only to have it torn away. He cringed. He honestly didn't know if he would have traded her place for his, not only because he would never let Katniss or anyone that he could help, go through what he had gone through. Second, he wasn't sure he would survive the loss of someone that he actually loved. He loved his dad, but his dad was lost long before he loved him. Peeta couldn't let himself feel guilty over his father's decision to stay. He wouldn't abandon him, much like his father wouldn't leave his mother; but, if Peeta let himself think that his father staying was his fault, he would be plagued with guilt for the rest of his life. Shuddering, he knocked off these considerations in his head and began to wonder which flavor he bet Katniss would prefer.

Honestly, he couldn't decide. He thought that she might love lemon, but there was also always the possibility that she was madly in love with chocolate, strawberry, carrot cake. He gave up trying to guess and decided that he would ask when art came around.

As the next three hours passed by, Peeta found himself realizing how much he didn't know about Katniss. What kind of music did she like? What was her favorite type of food? Did she prefer film to books, or books to film? Who was her favorite author? Did she love the classics or was she bored by Old English? Her favorite color was evergreen, but why? Did she prefer to be outdoors or indoors? The list of questions that he wanted to ask her was endless.

Peeta arrived in art class, looking to the back, seeing Rue, but no Katniss. He worked his way back to Rue, thinking that now would as good a time as any to tell her about the party for Katniss.

"Hello, Rue." He truly liked Rue. She was obviously brilliant, yet she hadn't lost her childhood. She had not lost her humility or sense of humor. He admired that above even her high intellect.

"Hello, Peeta." Rue smiled. "Are you okay?" Peeta saw confusion on her face and his hand automatically reached up to his lip. The numbing cream that he had put on it was too good almost. It was just enough to where he forgot that the injury even existed. Yesterday had been one heck of a whirlwind.

He nodded. "I'm fine, it was just a little misunderstanding."

"Hello Rue! Hello Peeta!" Cinna walked over, smiling at them both. "Rue, may I ask why you changed seats?"

Cinna smiled, but Peeta saw the concern in his eyes. Peeta tensed slightly. Had the other kids been picking on Rue?

Rue smiled. "Katniss invited me to sit next to her and Peeta during lunch yesterday."

The concern left and curiosity took its place. "She did, did she?" Peeta understood his interest. Katniss was not exactly the social type.

"Yeah, Rue and I had fun ribbing Katniss a little at lunch yesterday. Rue had pity on me," he heard Rue giggling, "he didn't leave me to fend for himself with Katniss." He laughed himself, knowing that being alone with Katniss was not at all a problem in his head.

Cinna smiled, an questioning, but telling smile on his face. "I'm sure that was such a problem for you, Peeta."

"Well, well. _If it isn't super nice guy, yucking it up_." He heard Katniss behind him. He turned around, hands up. "Master, I am so sorry. I did not see you there." He bowed dramatically.

Cinna and Rue both laughed and Katniss even chuckled a little. Peeta stood upright again. "Hey, Katniss."

"Hello, manservant Peeta." Cinna and Rue laughed again.

"Well, get ready for class," Cinna reminded. "We only have two minutes left of prep time."

"Peeta?" Rue asked.

"Yes, Rue?" Peeta asked around Katniss.

"When is Katniss' birthday?"

"You know, Rue, I have no idea. Let's ask. Katniss, when is your birthday?" Peeta gave himself an over the top Caesar Flickerman voice, laughing like him at the end. Rue giggled.

"I don't have a birthday." Katniss said.

Rue gave her a disparaging glance.

"Well, Rue, you know what that means."

Katniss froze up a little.

"What, Peeta?"

"I guess we'll have to ask Madge after class."

He saw Katniss' eyes widen, then look to him. Her eyes narrowed, as if she were looking at some diabolical genius.

"Oh! Good idea, Peeta!" Katniss sighed.

"Okay, class," Cinna saved Peeta from Katniss' plans. Let's get started. Pull out your piece from yesterday and get as close to finishing it as you can. He looked over to Katniss, seeing that she had already grabbed her charcoal, so he went to grab his acrylic paint. Walking back, he saw her begin to work on the branches and leaves of her tree.

The three of them worked in a comfortable silence, making progress.

"So, Katniss." He looked over to her and watched her working on the leaves for a second.

"Yes, Peeta," she replied without looking over.

"Who is your favorite author?"

"What?"

"Who. is. your. favorite. author?" He slowed down his words, in an attempt at humor.

"Why would it matter to you?" She sounded wary.

"Well, if your birthday is coming up, and I am getting you a gift, I would prefer it to be one that you like."

She looked at him. "I'll tell you, if you promise not to get me a gift."

"What if I didn't spend any money on the gift?" he countered.

"Nope. If you want answers, no gift."

"Well, I am afraid I can't promise that. People can't show up at birthday parties without a gift for the birthday person. That would just be rude." He began putting the finishing touches on the piece, struggling to keep from laughing at the frustration that he could feel emanating from Katniss.

"Yeah, Katniss. I want to get you a gift, too. I want to come to the party." Peeta winked at Rue behind Katniss' back, smiling. Katniss turned back to face him and Rue gave him a thumbs up. This kid, Rue, was something else. He was glad that she was part of their little crew now. It felt like they had been ganging up on Katniss together for ages, when in reality it had only been a day.

"Peeta," Katniss said with a glare, "Rue," she said turning to Rue, who had put the puppy dog look back on her face. "I don't do parties and I don't do gifts."

"The party is not for you, Katniss. Birthday parties are for the people who want to celebrate your life. The more you refuse, the more gifts we are going to get you." He smiled devilishly, enjoying this game. He turned back to the canvas. "I am sure that I could convince Madge and that Madge could convince Gale."

Katniss fumed. "That is ridiculous, Peeta," she spat. "Nobody really wants to celebrate my life."

Peeta stopped smiling. He turned to her and said, "Yes. Yes, we do want to, we want to be your friends."

Rue jumped in, "Yeah, Katniss. You and Peeta are my only friends here." Peeta heard himself in Rue, heard her desire to connect to people, to be accepted, to have friends.

Katniss looked down. "I don't know guys, I don't want to put anyone out."

The bell rang, with Peeta looking at Katniss. He shook out of it and said, "Katniss, we could easily do all of this without paying practically anything at all. Someone might spend a little money on you, but that is only because they want to, okay?"

She shrugged, silently gathering her stuff.

"Come on, Rue. We have questions to ask."

Katniss looked up, a little smile on her face. Peeta knew that they could pull this off without spending hardly any money at all. He smiled. Even if they did spend money, she never had to know about it.

Katniss, silently following them to lunch, asked, "Who is your favorite author, Peeta?"

He thought as they walked, thinking to himself. "I don't know if I have A favorite. I love all kinds of books though," he said. "I like the classics, like Austen and Dickens, but I also love Orwell and John Green. I am a sucker for a good story."

Katniss nodded, saying, "I think my favorite is probably... Hemingway." She smiled and he could see her liking Hemingway. The man was an artist with words, but he was also very simple in his delivery. It was impossible to miss what he was saying.

"So, when are you going to help me out with Math?" he asked.

"When are you going to help me out with English?"

He laughed. "The same day that you help me out with my math."

"Touché, good sir, touché."

They walked into the cafeteria and he saw Gale and Madge waiting in line, holding hands. He thought that it looked sweet. He thought that Gale had made a good choice. Madge was a pretty awesome person, she was just too much like himself for Peeta. Part of the reason that he found himself liking Katniss was because of the ways that she was different from him. Delly was different from himself, he supposed, just the wrong kind of different. Katniss seriously wasn't wrong about Delly being too nice. Whenever he had first met Delly, he thought that she had been pulling his leg, trying to trick him into something. It took them being around each other for like a year before he realized that that really was the way Delly lived, that it wasn't an act.

"Madge, Gale!" Katniss called out to them both and the two of them turned to face Rue, Peeta and Katniss. Gale grimaced and Madge looked at him with a nearly perfect parental stare. As they walked up, Katniss introduced Rue. "Gale, Madge, this is Rue. She's one of our friends from art class." Gale smirked and Peeta figured it was probably because Katniss didn't actually have tons of friends, like she made it sound.

"Hey, Rue," Gale said. "It's nice to meet you." He held out his hand, and Peeta realized that Katniss and Gale both tended to act out their welcomes and... warnings rather than say them. They didn't always have the best way with words, he guessed.

"Hey, Rue," Madge said, smiling. "Are you going to eat with us today?"

"She better be," Peeta said mockingly. "Rue, how would we ever be able to eat lunch without you?"

Rue giggled and Gale smiled, looking like he saw someone else in front of him.

Gale walked over to Peeta and Madge looked back and forth between the two of them, like she was watching an imaginary tennis match between the two of them in her head.

"Peeta, I'm sorry about yesterday. I was a little on edge."

Peeta smiled. "No hard feelings."

Gale smiled back and then looked to Katniss warily.

He looked back to Peeta and asked, "How are you so..."

"Nice?" Madge and Katniss had tilted their heads, finishing the question in unison. They both chuckled after, knowing that it was pure coincidence that they had made the same joke.

Gale looked confused until Katniss said, "We asked the same question yesterday."

"He was this way yesterday too?" Gale looked back at Peeta like he wanted to poke him in the face and see if he was real. Everyone was looking at him like he was some kind of unique creature that they had found in the wilds of the high school.

" SO, Madge..." Peeta started and Katniss sighed. "Rue wondered when Katniss' birthday was and I thought you would be the best person to ask."

Madge chuckled, looking to Katniss, who looked defeated, then back to Peeta. "It's on the thirteenth!" She said it happily, knowing that Peeta must have broken down some barrier that they couldn't get past.

"Then, I told her that Rue and I wanted to give her birthday gifts and she refused." He smiled at Gale, who had a smile growing on his face. "I told her that that wasn't nice at all."

"Not at all," Gale agreed, with a tone of mock outrage.

"So, I told her that her birthday party was actually for us, to be able to celebrate her life. I told her that the longer she refuses, the more gifts we get to buy."

Gale broke out laughing. He knew that he and Gale might actually have some fun putting this together.

"Peeta," Gale said, holding back more laughter. "You know, I think you have a point."

Katniss sighed, shaking her head. "Why is it such a big deal to not want a birthday party?"

Gale looked at her and said, "Katniss, it's not like we're going to invite the whole school. At most, there will probably be about fifteen people. Chill, okay?" She smiled back, "You know I am not good at being in the spotlight."

Gale nodded, a little more serious.

Peeta said, "Katniss talks to fifteen people?" He made a fake dramatic gasp, which broke the tension. Everyone laughed.

"I talk to people." Katniss protested, but Peeta saw her blushing. He wondered if he'd embarrassed her.

"I know." He smiled. "Honestly, Katniss, I think you might actually have a good time if you let yourself."

"Okay, okay," Katniss conceded. "I guess, that you guys, my family, and anyone who really knows me, can get me one gift, if the party is all done without to much glitzy stuff."

They all smiled. "I've got the invitations!" Madge said, smiling at Katniss.

They all chuckled again, knowing that invitations were pretty much a waste of time.

"Prim is going to want to decorate. Peeta," he looked to Madge, "can you do the cake?"

He smiled, knowing she already knew the answer. "Of course, but you have to tell me the flavor. Katniss never answers any of my questions," he joked.

"Her favorite is..." Madge paused, a look of confusion on her face. "Katniss, what is your favorite flavor?"

"I like everything," Katniss said, looking down. There were too many people around.

Madge just said, "Just tell Peeta later, when you decide."

Most of the group started walking away, then Katniss turned to Peeta, when they were alone and said, "Maybe, if you showed me your art, I would answer your questions." She smiled and walked away.

Peeta chuckled and caught up. "Okay, fine, if you insist." He looked to her and saw that she seemed to be really happy for the first time in a few weeks.

When they all sat down at the table, Peeta said, "Hey, Rue, tell them what grade you're in this year!"

Peeta and Katniss smiled, then tried not to laugh at the looks on Madge and Gale's faces when Rue answered.

"How old are you?" Gale asked, a look of wonder and amusement on his face.

"I'm twelve." Rue said, smiling at Katniss. Katniss smiled back.

They delved into conversation with Rue, leaving the tension of the birthday party in the back of their minds for the time being. Peeta, who had never planned anything before, was sure that two weeks was more than enough to get everything ready.


	9. Kat: Cake is the Splendor of Life

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters, but I love the ability to write another world for the characters from the Hunger Games. It is nice to see Katniss, Peeta, Gale, Rue, and Madge, as well as many others in the modern world, without the horrors of the Games.**

 **If you like, hate, or love the story, PLEASE REVIEW. I love hearing what everyone has to say. :)**

Chapter 9: Katniss

If Katniss had somehow thought that they would change their minds later, she was wrong. Of course, she knew, once Peeta and Rue had joined in, that she wouldn't be able to outwit all five of them. she could grumble all she wanted, but they just laughed and took it all in stride. The more she thought about it, the more she realized that it would have been a lot harder for Gale and Madge to throw the party on their own, but especially with Peeta taking care of the cake, she knew that she had no argument for cost. Each one of them was maybe going to spend five dollars on the costs of the party and maybe a few more bucks on the one gift that she was allowing them each to get her.

She guessed it was something she was going to have to live with, like having to go to senior prom next year, or watching people kiss other people on New Years Eve, while she was always single. She had amended the tradition, by just kissing Prim on the head every year. But, soon, too soon, Prim was going to be into boys and kissing them. She shuddered, trying to repress the picture in her head of having to scare the bejeezus out of any boy that wanted to date her.

She sighed, sitting in English, trying to understand what the teacher was talking about, but honestly, she was confused. Shakespeare, beyond speaking in old English, was always talking about love, like romance was the fabric that held the universe together. Of course, Katniss had never been in love with anyone before... or now. She felt herself clarifying that more often in the past week. It was the Monday before the party and she had told them to pick a theme, because they were the ones who wanted to throw the party. Today, she was supposed to go with Peeta, to the bakery, to try all the different kinds of cake, all because she had slipped up and told him that she had only ever had chocolate and vanilla cake. Peeta, the baker's kid, treated this like it was a crime against humanity, and to be fair, Katniss hadn't told him that she really didn't enjoy most cakes. She couldn't stand the dry sponge texture that cake always had. When she was little, she and her father had gone into this little bakery while they were on a road trip to Portland, and she couldn't remember where the bakery had been, but the cake had been so moist and warm and delicious. After that, Katniss had stopped liking cake, because in her mind, it couldn't even compare.

So, to be nice, and because she was happy to be Peeta's friend, she had decided to let him make her taste all of the different kinds of cake in their store. She had had to fight laughing at how passionate he had been... about cake. She doubted that he realized it, but when Peeta talked about cake he acted like he was talking about the love of his life.

"Katniss," he had said, letting his arms fly out. "A birthday party without a good cake.." He had shook his head, as if talking about a fallen comrade on the battle field. "Cake is the life of the birthday party, Katniss."

She had bitten her lip to keep from laughing at the look of reverence on his face. "Uh huh," she had responded, a tone of mock solemnity, wondering how long he would go on about cake, before she would have to give in and laugh.

He smiled, as if he knew that she was not as passionate. "You just wait, Katniss. You'll see. I'll take you to the bakery, and finally," he stated, closing his fist and bringing it down in front of his face, "then you will understand."

She had broke and laughed. She smiled now just at the memory of their conversation from a few days ago. She had figured that he had been bluffing about it, which is the only reason she hadn't refused. But then, on Friday, Peeta had said in English, "So, the cake tasting- it happens Monday after school."

"We're actually doing that?" She had asked, incredulous.

"Of course," he had said, righteously indignant. "Don't impugn my honor as a baker, Katniss Everdeen. You will taste all of the cakes!" He had declared it like a dying man, as if this was his last wish.

She had chuckled, unable to refuse. "Okay, okay. Geez."

Then, now, all day today, he hadn't mentioned it, but it was all she could think about, even when Madge was talking to her.

"So, the cake tasting is today, huh?" Madge smiled, imitating Peeta's dramatic voice.

She laughed. "I guess so."

"You know, Kat, I think you might like that boy."

She blushed, then refused, "What? Peeta? Nooo..."

Madge smiled even wider then. "I knew it!"

"No, no I don't Madge."

She looked up and saw Peeta walking up to them. Madge smiled, wiggling her eyebrows.

"Hey, you two. How's it going?" Peeta smiled his easy going smile and Madge said, "Denying the obvious."

Katniss felt herself go scarlet. "Madge, I swear, I know where you live."

Peeta grinned wider. "I've gotta know what this is about, Katniss looks like she is about to die."

"I am," Katniss groaned. Madge rolled her eyes. "Geez, Katniss, way to be dramatic."

Madge turned to Peeta, a smile on her face. The more that she got to know Peeta, she realized, the easier it was for her to laugh and joke around with everyone. He made her feel at ease.

"Sorry, Peeta," Madge intoned, "but I'm apparently not allowed to tell you, under threat of death."

Peeta smiled. "That's okay, Madge." He laughed, continuing, "You can just tell me when Katniss leaves."

Katniss sent Madge a true death threat and Madge sighed. "Alas, Peeta, it is one of those girl secrets."

Madge smiled, looking at Peeta. "Unless, of course, you have secrets you want to share." Madge wiggled her eyebrows.

Peeta blushed and Katniss thought, 'Peeta is an open book. What would he be hiding?'

"Yeah, Peeta. Please do tell us all of your secrets." She fluttered her eyebrows really fast and pretended to be filing her nails.

Peeta laughed and said, "No thanks."

"That's what I thought," Madge said. "Besides, that would make you late... to the cake tasting."

Peeta lit up and I shot her a look that said, "Oh so that's how this is going to be?"

"Madge," I said, "why don't you come with us?"

"I would," Madge said, hesitating, "But.." She blushed.

"But whaaatttt, Madddddge?" Peeta drawled, joking with her.

"Yeah, Madddddge." Katniss found herself saying, tossing an amused look toward Peeta.

"Well.. Gale and I are going on a date tonight and I have to go get ready after school."

Gale had walked up, sneaking behind Madge, and putting his hands over her eyes. "Hey gorgeous," Gale said, Madge blushing under his hands. She turned around and hugged Gale, smiling. He bent down, kissing her on the top of her head.

"Eeeewwwwwww, groossssss," Kat joked.

"Yeah, guys, get a room," Peeta said, throwing a smile her way.

She felt herself get a little stunned, dazzled by his smile. Peeta was the perfect guy, of course. Nice, sweet, a gentleman, friendly, smart, talented, and completely out of her league. She had known this from the beginning, but she felt herself get a little sad, thinking about how awesome Peeta was. Honestly, she wasn't sure she should continue being friends with him, but there also weren't any reasons not to be friends with him. She wasn't sure that she could stop being friends with him, now, even if she really wanted to; however, even though she was starting to feel this way, she knew that wouldn't ever choose not to be friends with him.

Her brain went back to the party that they had gone to at Delly's house on Saturday night.

 _She was wearing a black skirt that she had borrowed from Madge, with a lilac long sleeved shirt and royal purple corduroy vest that was a little form fitting on her, so she had left it open. She was wearing Converse, despite Madge's protests, because she wasn't the girl to wear heels. She had on eye-shadow and a little lip gloss, but she hadn't let Madge put anything else on her. She didn't want to look ridiculous. They had walked up to the door and the doorbell rang once, when Delly answered. "Katniss! Madge!" she shouted. "I'm so glad you came." She was holding a red solo cup in her hand, which Katniss really hoped was soda._

 _They walked in and Katniss looked to the kitchen. 'Thank goodness," she thought. She didn't see any alcohol, which was good, because she honestly didn't think she could handle Delly with alcohol in her system. She looked to her left and saw Peeta, looking at her. She blushed, because he was really handsome at the moment. He had on nice jeans and an olive green shirt, that made the blue in his eyes stand out._

 _He waved at them, motioning for them to come over his way._

 _They said bye to Delly and then walked over to meet Peeta.. who was talking to Gale. Katniss hadn't even recognized him. She blushed even deeper. She had been so busy looking at Peeta that she had completely missed her best friend of eight years. Wow, she was in trouble._

 _Prim, of course, had convinced her to go the party, because Mom was asleep in the next room and she was going to have friends over anyways. She promised that she would call if she needed it, but Katniss had no problem doubting her sister's promise. Prim seemed to think that Katniss didn't get out enough._

She shook her head, bringing herself back to the present. Gale and Madge had said goodbye, walking out of the school together. Peeta looked at her like a little kid on Christmas. Oh boy, she really was in trouble.

"You know," she said, "I cannot eat twelve or however many whole pieces of cake."

He laughed. "You could if you wanted to." He smirked at her, then said, "But this is only a tasting. I'm not making you eat the equivalent a small cake."

She smiled ruefully. "You say that now, but I can see it happening. 'Katniss, isn't cake simply divine? Isn't it simply the most splendid thing you've ever consumed? Please, Katniss, do eat this whole cake, so you can understand why cake is the splendor of life!'" She had let her voice become more and more British as she imitated his passion about cake.

He laughed, "I'm not British!"

She chuckled. "The next thing you know, we'll be talking about scones and high tea."

He shook his head, blushing a little. "I'm sorry if I got a _little_ overexcited about cake," he said, "but, after all, it is my life's work." He straightened his imaginary tie.

She smiled, shaking her head. She went to head for the bus, when he said, "Katniss, my car is over here." He pointed over to a Chevy Impala that was dark blue. She hesitated.

"Is there a bus stop by your store?"

"Yeah, about a block away. Why?"

She started walking toward his house, planning her journey home from the bakery.

"Just thinking about how I'm going to get home."

He looked at her, confused. "Am I not driving you home?"

She felt shame settle over her. "Umm. I can get home on my own."

She got in the door that he opened for her and she leaned over to open his door for him.

She smiled when he got in, determined to not talk about the ride thing.

"Why wouldn't I take you home?" Of course, he apparently had different ideas.

"Don't worry about it." She said, knowing that he was going to worry about it.

He paused, then moved on, even though she knew he would try to convince her later. She couldn't imagine how someone who could give their kid a car like this, what they would think of her house. She looked down, listening to the music that he was showing her.

"I know that most people our age aren't a fan of the classics, but.." he shrugged. "I'm a big fan of the fifties."

She liked the music, she decided. It reminded her of the days that her father and mother had danced in the living room, when they thought that she had gone to bed. Instead, she would peek through the door, loving the ways that they danced together, happy and laughing and talking.

They listened to the music, comfortable to listen without talking in the car. She liked being with Peeta like this, she liked how comfortable he was with her, and how she could just sit with him without feeling the need to talk.

 _Gale looked to Katniss and said, "You clean up well, Catnip." She rolled her eyes. Gale looked to Madge, kissed her on the cheek. "You, as always, look amazing." He said, the mushy-gushy, lovey-dovey feeling oozing out all over the place._

 _"Oh no, Peeta," She said dramatically, shrinking away from Gale and Madge, "I'm drowning. All of the lovey-dovey stuff is making it .. hard... to ... breathe."_

 _Peeta laughed, freely tossing back his head. She saw his hair fall back, the happiness on his face, and forced herself to turn back to Madge and Gale, who were both sending her a "yeah, right" look._

 _She shrugged, chuckling._

 _"We stayed up here so we could find you ladies," Peeta said, "But now, lets go explore." He grabbed Kat's hand, pulling her forward and she found herself chanting: He doesn't like you, he doesn't like you, he doesn't like you. He didn't let go of her hand until they had gotten all the way through the crowd, outside into the huge backyard, complete with pool and grill and everything. She could feel her hand as if it had been shocked. The pool was full of people and the grill looked like it was brand new._

 _That cleared her head. She saw Peeta, so at ease in this environment, and realized that his parents must be pretty well off. Even Gale, being here with Madge, seemed a little uncomfortable. Katniss knew that there wasn't a real difference in the value or worth of poor people versus rich people, but she knew that in reality, the poor people in the room had no problem being able to see the difference._

 _Katniss had spent years dreaming about what it would be like to live in a house like this, to not have to plan every cent of their money, not having to worry about extra expenses like parties and new clothes. The dreams had stopped when she had gotten to middle school, realizing that the rich kids, even with everything that they had, were.. kind of greedy. They weren't happy unless they had the top brand clothes or had the coolest journals and phones. They were always seeking to one up each other, it seemed. Kids like her and Gale, though, had no problem being happy with little or with much. She and Gale found their enjoyment in their families, not in fancy trips or houses._

 _She looked to Peeta and realized that even if she did like Peeta, there was no point. It's why she had issues with fairy tales like Cinderella. She had to work for everything that she had, but when the prince showed up, it was like his wealth and his princeliness outshines all of Cinderella's hard work. Also, the notion that he wouldn't recognize her immediately, to the point where he has EVERY maiden in the WHOLE KINGDOM try on the stupid shoe, well, Katniss was not sure that he deserved a girl like Cinderella._

 _Peeta would have deserved Cinderella, of course. The boy didn't know how to be anything other than perfect. That wasn't his fault. She just needed to remind herself that he and she lived in different worlds. That Cinderella was a fairy tale for a reason. the reason was that it wouldn't ever come true, not for her anyway._

 _The rest of the night, Peeta stayed by her side, smiling and talking, but all she could think about was how she had lost Peeta before she had ever started liking him._

She reminded herself. Friends, that was it. Peeta and her didn't fit together as anything other than friends. He would have no clue how to live in her world and she had no way to live in his world. She was smiling, trying to hide her disappointment.

They got to the bakery and he was halfway around to her when she opened her door and got out. He sighed.

"You know, Katniss, I was going to open your door."

She smiled. "I know, Peeta, but I can open my own doors." She looked down, steeling herself for the afternoon ahead. She looked back up, laughing at his indignant glare. His glare broke when she laughed and she saw him smile a genuine smile at her.

"Come on, you stubborn girl," he said, making sure that he was the one to open the door to the store.

She smirked at him and walked past him into the store. She smiled. It smelled wonderful. She walked up to the glass casing and heard a woman speak from the other side, "Don't touch the glass."

She hadn't touched the glass... yet. She was careful to put her hands behind her back and stay a reasonable distance from the glass.

"I'll be right back," Peeta said, smiling at her. He walked into the back and disappeared.

"Who are you?" the woman asked. Katniss stood up and looked around when she heard the harsh tone of the woman's voice. There was no one else there.

"Hello. I'm Katniss Everdeen, Peeta's friend." She smiled, wondering who the woman was. She nearly slapped her hand to her forehead. "You must be his mother. I'm sorry that I didn't introduce myself, I was just fascinated by your baked goods."

There was an awkward silence, so Katniss went back to staring at the goods for a second, before his mother said, "You should leave." Katniss stood, to find her looking at his mother.

"Me?" She questioned.

"Yes, you. You obviously aren't good enough to be with my son."

"I'm just his friend. I think I am good enough for that."

The lady, obviously, was not used to people talking back to her.

"No, you are not. I decide who he gets to be friends with, and I'm telling you to leave now. Before I call the cops. You probably wouldn't have the money to buy anything anyways."

Katniss stood stunned, unable to respond. The woman reached for the phone and said, "Leave now or I'll call them."

She just nodded, swallowing, trying not to be upset. She knew that she didn't deserve to be his girlfriend, but she couldn't understand why the woman was so cruel. She turned and walked out of the store, turning right. She had seen the bus stop as she and Peeta had driven past. She felt numb, like the lady had seen right through her, like she had called Katniss out on her worst fears about her and Peeta. She had made it half a block, when she heard someone running behind her. She heard panting, so she moved out of the way, the stunned look still on her face. She blinked, seeing Peeta in front of her.

"Where are you going?" he asked, looking hurt.

"She told me to leave."

"Who?"

"The lady behind the counter." Katniss gulped. "She told me she would call the cops."

She felt herself getting more and more upset, by the second.

Peeta's face had morphed into horror. He stood up and asked, "Katniss?"

"Katniss?" He shook her a little by the shoulders.

She blinked. "Yes?" She saw him looking concerned.

"What did she say to you?" She heard Peeta sound angry.

"She said.. that I.. wasn't good.." She felt a tear run down her cheek. "Wasn't good enough... for you."

He brushed the tear away gently, a pained look in his eyes.

"Katniss, she is a cruel woman. I'm sorry, I never thought that she would be so mean to you."

"It's okay, Peeta. She was right." Katniss looked down, feeling herself drown in her insecurities and fears, the same way she felt every time she and her mother had argued right after her father had died.

"No." He said it so.. positively. He tilted her chin up. "You are too good for me."

She felt herself choking up. "Don't worry about the cake, Peeta. It doesn't matter."

"Yes, it does. It matters to me." He said it so tenderly, before he hugged her. "Katniss, I'm so sorry."

She leaned into the hug, feeling safe with Peeta, letting herself feel safe in his arms.

He leaned back, keeping his arm around her shoulder. "Come with me." He walked her back to his car, opening the door for her and helping her to sit down inside. "I'll be right back."

She leaned back against the seat, smelling deeply. The car smelled like Peeta's cologne, like fresh bread. She heard his car door open, with a platter in his hands. He put the platter in the middle, on top of the consul, and she wordlessly took the platter and put in her lap.

He drove and she didn't ask where. When they got there, he parked and she looked up. They were at the park by the school, he was getting something out of the car. She went to open her door and he beat her to it, holding a blanket under his arms. Smiling, he joked, "I was going to open the door, Katniss.

She smiled back feeling a little better already.

She got out, holding the cake, and they walked toward the grass field, finding a good spot, and Peeta spread out the blanket on the ground.

They sat down and he opened the container, smiling at her, "Your cake buffet, m'lady."

She smiled back, shyly. "Thank you, m'lord." She chuckled, asking him, "So which of these cakes is YOUR favorite?"

"Hmmm..." He pointed to the dark red cake. "Red velvet."

"Let's start with that one then."  
"That's fine with me," he said, pulling plastic forks from the bottom of the platter. They scooped up a bite and he groaned.

She giggled. "Get a room, geez." He smiled, chuckling. "If I could marry that cake, I would."

She laughed, letting herself feel good, relieved by the space between her and the mean woman.

"Which next?" he asked, smiling, acting like Vanna White.

She smiled. "This one." She pointed at the yellow, spongy looking cake.

"Okay," he said and they tasted. Peeta closed his eyes, breathing in, then "mmmmmm"ing.

She laughed. "I think you have a romantic thing for cake. Would this one be your mistress?"

He chuckled. "Lemon is my icing on the side."

Next, they choose carrot cake, which Katniss really, really liked, but the last one was her favorite.

"What is this one called?" she had said before they tasted it, looking at the yellowy cake with pineapples and cherries.

"Pineapple Upside Down Cake," he had said.

She took one bite and grabbed the whole plate, hogging it for herself.

He laughed, "You like it then?"

She groaned. "This cake is the splendor of life!" she yelled dramatically to the empty field.

He laughed even harder, smiling at her when he could breath again, tears in his eyes. "As it happens, this is my specialty."

She gasped. "Peeta, you never told me. So this is why some gorgeous girl hasn't come along and snatched you up." She laughed, wishing that she was good enough.

He rolled his eyes, still smiling. "Yes, I hide my special cake making skills for that very reason." He chuckled.

"So, you think that I could win a girl over with this cake?"

"You could make a girl beg to marry you, the way you make this cake." She laughed, watching him smile at her, as he pondered it out loud, as if that were actually an option.

"Alas," he said, "No girls like me."

Katniss snorted, devolving into laughter. "Did you just snort?" he said laughing.

She kept laughing, even harder, snorting again. She felt it getting hard to breathe.

She heard Madge and Gale call out to them, walking up, and she still couldn't stop laughing.

"What's so funny?" Gale asked.

"Peeta.." She lost it again. She finally breathed, trying not to devolve into a giggle fit.

"He said that ... that no girls liked him." Madge laughed, mostly at Katniss, unable to take her eyes of Peeta as he looked at Katniss. He looked... unbelievably happy.

"We are here to take you home, Katniss."

"Home?" She straightened up. Peeta sighed. "I didn't want you to have to take the bus and you seemed pretty against me taking you home... so.."

She looked at Peeta and smiled. "Peeta, it's not your fault. You're awesome."

He smiled back. "I know." She laughed a little at the fake bravado.

Gale chuckled. "Did she pick a cake?"

Peeta laughed, "She nearly bit my hand off for the rest of the Pineapple Upside Down Cake, so I think that one is the winner."

Gale smiled, happy to see Katniss so happy. He saw the concerned look on Peeta's face.

Madge saw it, too, so she drug Katniss up to her feet. "Bye, Peeta."

Katniss turned to Peeta, suddenly reserved and a little downtrodden. "Thanks, Peeta." She looked up, a tear running down her face. "I had fun." They turned away, Madge and Katniss with their arms around each other.


	10. Gale and Peeta: Team Katniss

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters, they are Suzanne Collins' creations. However, I have nudged a few things in different directions than the book or movie. Feel free to love or hate my story, but please tell me how you feel.**

 **Also, the last chapter was a little serious, so I should make it clear. Domestic Violence is wrong. Treating others like they're beneath you is wrong. I just knew that Peeta was a better person than his mom, which is why he stands distant from her. He didn't take Katniss back in, but you're about to see him defend her when he goes back in the bakery. Enjoy!**

 **PLEASE REVIEW! :)**

Chapter 10- Gale and Peeta

Gale saw the concern on Peeta's face for Katniss, the moment that they walked up. Sure, he saw how happy Peeta was with Katniss, which he thought was great. So far, Peeta seemed to be a good guy. Peeta hadn't given Gale any details earlier, but just by the tone of his voice, Gale knew that he and Madge needed to come.

Gale turned away from Peeta for a second to watch Katniss walk away, she and Madge arm in arm.

He turned back to see Peeta standing on his feet. "Thank you for coming, Gale."

"What happened, Peeta?"  
"My mother.. I never dreamed.." Peeta breathed in and spoke fast, knowing that Gale needed to go soon enough.

"My mother is a cruel and vindictive woman," Peeta said in a hushed voice, so it wouldn't carry over the field. "I left Katniss with her for two minutes, long enough for me to walk to the back and put these cake pieces on a platter." Peeta looked down and Gale heard guilt and sadness mingle in his voice. "I never dreamed that she would talk to Katniss that way, so when I came out and Katniss was gone, I had no idea what had happened. I rushed out of the store and she was about half a block away." He gulped. "I caught up to her and she told me that my... that that vile woman had told her that 'Katniss wasn't good enough for me.'" Gale's face recoiled in shock, both at the words that had been told to Katniss and in the protective ring in Peeta's voice. "She said that she would call the cops on her." Pain and anger melded in Peeta's face and Gale knew that he would never hurt Katniss on purpose.

"Peeta, you know that this isn't your fault, right?"  
Peeta looked up, hopeful and sad. "Isn't it? I should have never left her alone."

"Do you really think your.. that woman would have said anything different if you were there?"

Peeta thought for a moment, then shook his head. "But I would've been there to defend her."

Gale said, "Katniss, as you know, can take care of herself." He sighed, looking at Peeta. "She must really care about you."

Peeta shrank back. "Why do you say that?"

Gale laughed sadly, "Since when does Katniss let anyone boss her around?"

Peeta cringed. "She thought that.. that my mother," venom dripping from the word mother, "was right. That she wasn't good enough for me."

Peeta shook his head and Gale said, "What'd you tell Katniss?"

Peeta gave him a small smile, "I told that she is too good for me."  
Gale smiled back at Peeta, "That's the best thing you could've said."

Peeta looked him in the eyes, determination in his gaze. "It's true."

Gale nodded, hearing Madge honk in the distance. "I think you might have shot, Peeta." He walked away smiling to himself, wondering if Madge saw the same thing that he was beginning to see.

Peeta watched Gale walk away, feeling a sort of anger rising up in the pit of his belly.

 _"It's okay, Peeta. She was right."_

Peeta realized that it was about time he told his mother a thing or two. Peeta felt himself preparing to rip one into his mother the moment that he walked into the bakery. Thinking about how long it had been, how many times he had wanted to let her just how badly he hated her.

He walked in the bakery and saw her talking to his father, his father looking down the same way Katniss had. His mother hadn't noticed that he had walked in to the store. "I can't believe that you would let our son hang out with that kind of riffraff, acting all polite, like she isn't very well trying to get free food from the store, just because she thinks that she is good enough to be his friend. I decide," her face had contorted into one of pure rage. "I DECIDE! Do you HEAR ME!"

"No, you don't." Peeta said it, hearing the calm tilt to his voice. He had to show her that he meant this. It wasn't an emotional, little kid outburst that would go away.

She looked at him, the rage amplifying. She stormed over yelling, "Who DO YOU THINK YOU-"

"You will never speak to Katniss Everdeen like that, ever again."

"What are you going to do about it?" she sneered.

"I'll call the cops," he said.

Her eyes showed the waver in her resolve. "You coward- you don't have the guts. A real man wouldn't-"

"A real person of either gender would not be cruel and vindictive. A real woman would be loving and caring. Katniss Everdeen is more of a woman than you'll ever be."

His father looked up, as if he were watching storm clouds dissipate.

"Katniss," she sneered. "You mean the little girl who nearly cried, who ran away."

"She left out respect for me, you evil creature." He heard the darkness, the determination vibrating out towards her.

When she heard his voice, she flinched. "A real man wouldn't talk to a lady like that!" She raised her hand to slap him and he caught her by the wrist.

"A real lady wouldn't abuse her son or her husband." He threw her hand down. "A real lady would realize that there are other ways to deal with grief besides violence." He looked her in the eyes. She looked as if she had been slapped. "I have the x-rays to prove my injuries and his," he said, pointing at his father. "I will call the cops if the following ever happens again, until I have received my trust fund and left this house."

He held his hand, numbering them off, "First, if you ever," he let the protective darkness cascade over his words, "and I do mean, ever talk to the woman that I love like that again, I'll call them. Second, if you ever hit me or Dad, or any of the other kids, ever again, I'll call them. Third, if you ever talk down to that extraordinarily good man over there ever again, I'll call them. You WILL get counseling. You WILL get better. Once I leave, this is no longer my concern, because if major changes don't happen, I'll never come back."

Her mouth was rounded out in a small 'o' and her eyes showed fear. "I'll never hurt you, mother, unless you break these rules, and then, I'll only call the cops." He sounded firm. "I'll never lay a hand on you. I'll never lie to you. Agreed?"

She just nodded. He smiled. "Good. Go home and make dinner. Dad and I will close the shop." He walked past her with authority, his dad looking hopeful." She looked at him, as if she were about to scream, raising her hand, and saw her reflection in the stainless steel of the kitchen door.

She lowered her hand, looking ashamed.

"Goodbye Mom!" he said. She looked around and said, "You've never called me that before."

"You've never been nice before." She looked down nodding and walked out of the store.

His father looked like the shock was finally setting in and Peeta just said, "Grab a chair, Dad." His father sat down and Peeta handed him a blueberry scone, thinking of Katniss.

He laughed softly to himself, trying to imagine a world where Katniss wasn't good enough for him. Even in all of the parallel universes, he knew that that wasn't possible. It couldn't exist.

Gale sat in the back seat, watching Madge joke with Katniss, but Katniss was in another world.

"Catnip." She sat up, looking back to him.

"Are you going to tell us about it?" They were getting close to her house. Prim already had chocolate and a romantic comedy cued up and at the ready.

She shrugged.

"Are you okay, Kat?" Madge asked.

Katniss shook her head. No.

"Can we help?" Kat nodded. Yes.

"How?" Kat looked to Madge, sadness in her voice. "You can apologize to Peeta for me."

"What?" Gale asked.

"Tell him I'm sorry." Her voice sounded dull and weak. "Tell him I'm sorry that I can't tutor him tomorrow."

"Why not?" Madge asked.

"His mom doesn't want us to be friends."

"So what?" Gale asked.

"I have to respect her wishes."

Gale shook his head.

"What if I could prove that wasn't true for Peeta? That Peeta doesn't care what his mom said?"

"He said I was too good for him." She chuckled, weakly. "As if I was ever good enough."

Madge looked to him, shocked, worried. He felt the same way. "We're coming in," Gale said, looking to Madge for confirmation.

Madge smiled, looking relieved that he had suggested it. He chuckled to himself, thinking about how sweet Madge was to not want to hurt his feelings. They both knew that Katniss needed them more.

"'Kay." Katniss said it, then looked dazed out the window again.

Gale pulled out his cell phone, texting Peeta.

 _G: Peeta, you there?_

 _P: Yeah, what's up?_

 _G: I need you to call the number I give, whenever I tell you._

 _P: Okay. Can I ask why?_

 _G: You'll know when the phone gets answered._

 _P: *thumbs up*_

Gale shrugged the phone back into his pocket, after texting Peeta the Everdeen house phone number. They got to the house and Prim opened the door, running out to Katniss. Gale wondered when he had gone from punching him to using him to cheer up Katniss.

Katniss, seeing Prim, smiled and stood up, the strong Katniss back in place, as much as it could be.

"Do you mind if we stay for a while, Prim?"

"Of course not. I just finished dinner. Come on in." Katniss smiled, her arm around Prim.

"What did you make, little duck?"

"Your favorite, potato casserole." Katniss smiled, nodding, "You know how to treat a girl when she is down."

Prim looked from Madge to Gale, a worried look on her face. Katniss never admitted to having a weakness.

They walked into the house, talking like a family. Katniss started to come out of herself for a little while, until Prim asked her how school had been today. Then, it seemed, Katniss started to sink again.

Prim stood up, splashing Katniss in the face with a glass of water. Katniss gasped, looking down at her shirt, moping her hair out her face and the water from her face. They had not even eaten dinner yet.

"Prim!"

"Tell me what happened!"

"You just doused me with water!"

"Tell! ME!" Gale and Madge laughed in the background and Katniss sighed, slumping back into her seat.

"Recorders. Phones, Paper, everything. You know the drill."

Everyone put all of the stuff that they had on the counter, as Gale finished the text he was sending.

 _G: Nvm._

 _G: Come to this address in 30 min_

Gale shared his location with Peeta and saw Peeta immediately text back, "Will do."

They walked out toward the backyard and Madge was patted down, then Gale, then Prim.

Katniss, as usual, was right to have checked. She pulled a recorder out of her bottom pocket and threw it onto Prim's bed. They all walked out into the middle of her backyard and sat on the ground.

"Okay, now everyone repeat after me.

"I will not," Katniss said. "I will not," the voices chorused.

"in any way" "in any way"

"with anyone" "with anyone"

"even friends and family" "even friends and family"

"repeat what Katniss says." She finished. "Repeat what Katniss says," they finished, all used to the routine that Katniss had made due to her sister's ability to sneak past loop holes.

"I went with Peeta to taste cakes." Everyone was leaning in intently, paying close attention to her story. "Well, we went to the bakery in Peeta's car and when I went inside, Peeta told me that he'd be back in a minute, so I was looking at the amazing stuff that they had in the glass case. I heard the woman behind the counter say kind of rudely, 'Who are you?'" She gulped. "I thought she was talking to someone, but we were the only two up front. So, I said. 'Hello, I'm Katniss Everdeen, Peeta's friend.' I realized that she must be his mother, so I said, 'You must be his mother. I am sorry that I didn't introduce myself. I was just fascinated by your baked goods.'" She looked down, "I wanted to be nice, because Peeta has been so nice to me."

Everyone stared at her, willing her to continue. Gale was wondering what she had been really thinking during all of this. Did Katniss like Peeta? He was asking himself, but he was pretty sure that she did.

"It went silent for a minute, so I started looking at the case again," Katniss said. "Then, she said. 'You should leave.' I asked, 'Me?'" She looked down again, everyone silent.

"'Yes, you. You obviously aren't good enough to be with my son.'

'I'm just his friend. I think I am good enough for that.'

'No, you are not. I decide who he gets to be friends with, and I'm telling you to leave now. Before I call the cops. You probably wouldn't have the money to buy anything anyways.'" Katniss blushed, though she was more pale than ever.

Gale saw another tear slide down Kat's cheek and he fought back his anger, thinking about his response seemed to blanche in comparison with Peeta's.

"So, I left. Not that any of you know this," her blush deepened.

Prim gasped. "Do you like him, Katniss?"

Katniss, looking down, said, "Yeah." Gale had never heard Kat so.. dejected in his whole life.

"That's awesome!" Madge said.

"He would be lucky to have you," Gale said, letting his love for Katniss ring out. She was like a little sister to him. She deserved to be happy.

Kat shook her head and he nearly interrupted, when he heard her say, "When she said it, I knew she was right. He's smart and handsome and rich and talented and so, so nice." Kat smiled wearily at her feet, sounding relieved. Gale realized it was probably the first time she'd allowed herself to saw any of this. He heard her choke on the word, nice. He wanted to reach out, but he needed to let her finish. "Of course," she laughed at the ground, "Peeta ran after me while I was walking to the bus stop. He said that I was too good for him, as if." She sniffed, her voice growing stronger. "He took me to the park and he refused to cancel the tasting." She sighed. "I wish that..." She shook her head, "But i'm not."

"Like hell you're not," Madge said.

"Yeah," Prim said, tearing up, "you're so amazing, Katniss. He would be so lucky..." She scooted over to hug Katniss and Madge did the same.

A knock sounded on the door. Gale smiled, hoping Katniss wouldn't kill him, but reveling in his perfect timing.

"So, now might be a good time to mention that I told Peeta to come to your house and that's him. I'll get the door," he added, as Katniss' face transformed in shock.

"You did what?"

Madge and Prim immediately moved into action, fixing Kat's hair and wiping away her tears. Then he saw Prim run back out of the house, carrying a Kleenex. Once she was back outside, he opened the door, to face Peeta.

Peeta had no clue where he was, but he had a suspicion that it was Katniss' house.

He knocked, hearing some people talk in the backyard, but not loud enough to be overheard. He knocked again, hoping that he had come to the right place.

Gale opened the door, a smile on his face.

"Hey. Peeta, can I ask you a question?"

"Sure." Peeta wondered why he'd driven all the way here to answer a question.

"Do you like Katniss?" Gale smiled, as if he already knew.

Peeta lowered his voice. "Yeah. Quite a bit."

"Good. Come in," Gale said it as if it had been a prerequisite to him coming inside.

He walked in and Gale walked Peeta through to the living room, to where Peeta could see all parts of the house, including the path to the backyard.

"So, Peeta. Katniss is in the backyard. She just told us what happened today. I think you are the guy, to uh.." Gale coughed, "clear things up."

He looked at Peeta as if he was trying to let him in on a secret.

"Clear what up?" he asked, leaning closer.

"Clear up some confusion about what we talked about at the door."

Peeta leaned back, his face unsure.

"Are you sure that I should... right now?"

"She needs to hear it." Gale sighed. "Come inside when you guys are done talking and we'll eat."

Peeta saw Madge and another girl, about Rue's age, come inside.

Peeta moved forward. "You must be Prim." He held out his hand. "I'm Peeta."

Prim smiled, giving a curt nod. "You have my permission." Peeta blushed as she shook his hand, then moved past him to the kitchen. Madge just pointed to the backyard and gave her mom stare, that said "go out there and talk, now."

Peeta held up his hands, surrendering and walked out back. He saw Katniss standing out in the middle of the yard, her back to him, as she watched the sunset.

He took a breath and stepped forward.


	11. Talk About It

**Disclaimer: I am no Suzanne Collins, but I love her work.**

 **I am glad, as usual, to know that people are enjoying the story, and as a writer, I can't seem to keep myself from writing for this story. Even I cannot wait to see how it fleshes out. I'm sorry that I've not updated with my usual fervor, but I wanted to make sure that the chapter was perfect, the best version that I could create.**

 **Tell me what you feel in the reviews and thanks for reading!**

Chapter 11- Katniss with some Peeta

Katniss looked at Madge and Prim, both of whom worked furiously to try to make her pretty, for some reason that she didn't understand. Obviously, they knew that she liked Peeta now, but she figured that they at least somewhat understood the fact that Peeta didn't feel anything for her. So much for that.

"Okay, Katniss, don't be dumb." Madge said those words as if Katniss was supposed to know what to do with them. Madge braided her hair and Prim brought her a tissue in the time that it took Gale to walk to the front door. Katniss felt like she had been whipped around and felt how everything, now, seemed to be strangely still.

Peeta must have came into the house, because Madge and Prim started to head that way. Peeta was supposed to come her, if he wanted to, she guessed. She couldn't believe that Gale had told him where she lived. Of course, she knew that she had plenty of time to torture him later. She just hoped that Peeta was not too appalled by her home, hoped that he would not see her as a charity case, as someone who needed to be taken care of by someone else.

She didn't feel particularly strong at the moment, she understood, but she figured that if she allowed herself a few moments, to stare at the sunset, to steel herself, then she wouldn't be brutally disappointed when she told Peeta how she felt, when he refused to like her back. She wondered, for a few moments, who might actually be crazy enough to like her like that.

She heard the back door close and someone walking up behind her. He stopped next to her and said, "That kind of orange."

The sunset was a mixture of pinks and purples, but in the midst of it all was a sort of wistful orange. It was the color that tied the sunset together, that took it from being merely pretty to breath-taking. "It's beautiful." She said, hearing the wistfulness that she saw in the sunset, seep into her voice. "I'll have to kill Gale later, of course, but for now I'll look at the sunset."

"Kill Gale for what?" he chuckled softly, talking in a hushed voice, mimicking her quiet tones.

"For telling you where I live obviously. I can't be mystical and alluring now." She felt herself chuckling with him at that, both of them not saying anything, just staring outwards.

"Why do you really wish that he hadn't told me?" Peeta sounded curious, but a little hurt.

"I'm poor, Peeta. You probably live in a gorgeous house, your parents own a business, you have a car. I just... I don't have any of that."

He looked at the sunset for a few more seconds, then turned to face her. "You know how ridiculous of a reason that is, right?"

She turned to him, harsh and upset, until she saw the soft, somewhat pleading look on his face. "Why is it ridiculous?" She asked.

"It is ridiculous, because despite all that I have, I'd kill for what you've got. You have Prim and a house that looks lived in, you have this confidence, this surety in yourself, that I don't usually have."

She smiled. "You have us, too, you know. Madge and Gale and Rue and me." She looked down. "We care about you."

Peeta looked at her and smiled, "You care about me?"

"Of course," she said, looking up at him. "How could I not?"

He smiled. "Very easily, after today."

"Yeah, right," she said. "You were so nice and caring today, putting up with me and my insecurities." She smiled to herself, looking away from him. "You took me to a park and fed me lots of really good cake."

"Yeah, after _my mother_ attacked you."

"You didn't do anything wrong, Peeta. I'm not sure you even know how to be anything but.." She let it fade off, not wanting to hurt yet.

"But what?"

"Perfect." She said it like a goodbye, knowing in her head that it was coming.

She heard Peeta laugh and she turned to him confused. He looked... almost cheerful, as if some kid had just talked to him about cake.

He came closer to her and took her hands, then he looked up into her face, cautiously hopeful.

"I don't care."

She recoiled in the two seconds that it took him to continue.

"Katniss, I don't care if you are poor. I don't need you to be rich. I don't need to open your door or drive you places or buy you food."

She knew she looked confused, so she just went for it. "I know, that's what I've been saying.."

"But," he said, tilting her chin up with one of his hands, "I want to do all of those things. I want to drive you places and buy you food and give you gifts and open your doors. I want to do all of those things, Katniss, because I like you."

"Peeta, you like everyone. You can't go around doing all of those things for everybody." She smirked, hoping that she wouldn't give too much away. Maybe, just maybe, they could still be friends.

"I don't want to do those things for everybody, I want to do them for you." She looked at him, for a brief moment, stunned.

He leaned closer, catching her off guard, and kissed her on the lips, his hand slipping from her cheek into her hair. She felt shocked at first, but then responded, enjoying the feeling. It felt.. natural to kiss him, for him to hold her like this. She wondered at the action, at where it had come from- did Peeta mean that he _liked_ her? That made absolutely no sense.

He broke away for a second, looking at her, a tender look in his eyes, a soft smile on his face. "Do you get what I am saying Katniss?"

"Peeta, I'm not good for-" He cut her off, kissing her more deeply this time, putting both of his hands on her face. She felt herself hoping that it might work out for her and Peeta. He came up for air and then kissed her again, several times in a row.

"Katniss, I've liked you for such a long time." He had a smile on his face, one she realized that he only used around her.

"Peeta." She blushed. "Are you sure you have the right girl? I'm nothing compared to the most popular guy in school," she said, looking down.

He paused. She heard some doubt in his voice. "Do you not like me, Katniss?"

She looked up quickly, "I thought it was obvious that I like you that way." She blushed more deeply.

A look of happiness, of awe came over his face. He brushed her cheek with his thumb.

"Katniss, you are way too good for me." He smiled. "When I'm with you, I feel like I'm flying, like all of the mistakes I've made don't matter anymore, and all of my regrets fall away. You are stunningly beautiful, you are wicked smart, and of course, you are the next Monet." He smiled. "No other girl has, to use your words, 'snatched me up', because from the moment I met you, I couldn't see them anymore." Determination and passion smoldered in his eyes. "You're the girl for me, Katniss." He leaned forward, kissing the tip of her nose.

She giggled. "You are so melodramatic." She wrapped her arms around his neck, and he looped his around her waist.

"Well, I was a boring, simple fellow," he said, using a terrible British accent, "until you came along."

She laughed, then blushed when she met his gaze. She hesitated, leaning slightly forward to kiss him again.

She heard him breathe in and meet her, both of them closing their eyes, leaning into the kiss.

* * *

Peeta, aware that Katniss was the most beautiful woman on the face of the planet, felt ecstatic when she wrapped her arms around his neck. He looked her in the eyes, trying to stay casual, but knowing how much he already care for her. His heart felt like singing. He had kissed Katniss Everdeen. Not just once, but several times.

Honestly, he could barely breathe when he pulled away from her after the first kiss. It had felt so natural to hold her, to kiss her, that for a moment he had forgotten that she hadn't actually told him how she felt. Horror struck him as she paused. Oh, what if he had ruined everything? What if Gale had misread the situation, thought that Katniss had felt one way when she felt the complete opposite?

Her blush, her confirmation, had sent him soaring. He had never felt so good, not in the entirety of his life. He knew that when she leaned forward again, that she was asking for him to kiss her again, not in her words, but in her sweet hesitation. He only hesitated with her, because he had honestly, in all truth, been waiting, dreaming about this moment, for a long time. Then he realized that it was actually real, that he really wasn't dreaming again this time. Eagerly, he leaned forward to kiss her again, more deeply and a little rougher at first, but then softly, one, two, three more times.

"Dinner is ready!" They both broke the kiss at the same moment, blushing, both unsure of what they should say before they went inside. He smiled, wanting to reassure her, so he reached out gently, and took her hand, looking to her for confirmation. She smiled back, still red in the face, and tightened the grip. He leaned over and whispered to her, though he knew that no one could her, "So, you like me, huh?" He gave her a smug look and she rolled her eyes.

"Oh, shut up, Peeta." His heart squeezed tightly in his chest, not knowing how to handle the happiness that he was feeling right now.

"Seriously, though, Katniss." He paused, realizing that they had been walking toward the back door. He faced her. "Will you go on a date with me?"

"Peeta," she said, looking down. "I don't want you to spend a lot of money or anything on me."

He tilted her chin up with his free hand, wanting to look her in the eyes. "Katniss, I'm not going to spend a thousand dollars on our FIRST date. Obviously, that is how much the _second_ and _third_ dates ALWAYS cost.." He laughed, reigning in his humor, trying to comfort her. She looked sincerely worried.

"I don't think you and I are going to be the fancy restaurant type, Katniss. Yes, I will pay for everything on the date, because I am a gentleman, but mostly, I am going to pay, because I don't want you to worry about anything with me. I want.." He looked down briefly, then back up to her eyes. He let his determination shine through his gaze. "I want you to know that I am reliable."

She laughed. "Peeta, I'm not sure you know how to be anything but dependable."

He smiled back, saying, "Then, I don't want to hear about any of this co-pay nonsense. You are the precious, indispensable woman that I want to date, and for the love of Moses, you are going to let me show you a good time."

She giggled. "Yes, sir!" She saluted and he couldn't help but be happy, be content with the new happiness he'd found. 'Sure,' he thought, 'I'll have to find a way to be less.. no, to be bearably cheesy, unlike the romantic comedy he felt playing out in his head.

They walked back to the house, opening the back door. When the door opened, they had to jump out of the way as Madge, Gale, and Prim fell onto the back porch.

Katniss glared and Peeta said, "Smooth guys, really smooth," though he heard no hint of irritation in his voice. This was the best thing that had ever happened to him. So what if the whole world knew? He smiled and he saw Katniss look at him, her eyes fixed on his face. He pulled her over the mass of bodies underneath them and she purposefully stepped all over Gale on the way to the kitchen. Katniss, Peeta saw, had a smug look on her face and he guessed that balance had been restored.


	12. The Real Party Beckons (Peeta)

**Hello! I'm glad that you all enjoyed the last chapter, but it is definitely not the end. I have plot twists in the making! Let me know if you enjoy the changes that I make, because honestly, I love to work issues that matter into my writing.**

 **THANK YOU FOR REVIEWING. It makes me so happy to know that all of these words on a screen mean something to other people, not just me. I may not update as often, but I am going to try to have this story end well. I know that tragedy strikes in real life, but I can choose to make this a real life happy ending, just with a few hardships in between the bliss of the moment and the end.**

 **PLEASE ENJOY. :)**

Chapter 13- The Party Beckons

As the week drug on, Peeta couldn't believe that him and Katniss had kissed. Honestly, he was pretty sure that he was going to wake up one morning to find out that Katniss didn't remember it at all and that she would deck him in the face. Of her right hook, he had no doubt. He had never seen it in action, but he knew her well enough to know that she didn't mess around.

Other than his doubts concerning reality versus fiction, Peeta found himself on the high wire, adrenaline rushing, waiting to know more, to learn more. He knew that Katniss was not the type to date and when he asked her, she quickly found another topic to talk about, though he was happy to let it slide. He didn't know, really, whether she had ever dated anyone before. Although embarrassment was rare for Katniss, he didn't want her to feel pressured to tell him things that she didn't want to share.

Madge had warned him that roses, typically romantic, were not Katniss' favorite flowers, so he gratefully accepted the knowledge and made special note of it. As the week passed, he learned more about her. She was not a huge fan of public displays of affection, which he had kind of seen coming, but slowly he was managing to convince her that he liked driving her home and he'd mentioned that he was more than willing to hang out with Prim, remembering how much fun he'd had that night at dinner. In the Everdeen household, jokes and good times seemed as natural as breathing. He noticed a cool exchange between Katniss and her mother, but he knew that it wasn't like the coldness that he felt with his own mother. Katniss and her mother seemed to be at odds with one another, strangely enough, where Katniss had the slight upper hand.

Peeta had wondered absentmindedly when he saw it, about what could have caused the rift, about what he might be able to do to help Katniss with the situation. Then, of course, he realized that Katniss and he had only kissed a few times about thirty minutes before, and while they were friends, he distinctly noticed that Madge and Gale seemed to glide right by the topic, even if they had worry in their eyes. Peeta was pretty certain that this was not his place to intervene and that if Madge and Gale were concerned, but said nothing, then the topic was probably better left without being discussed.

That night, despite the mother-daughter chill, the home was calm, peaceful, and happy. Peeta immensely enjoyed himself, never having felt so instantaneously at home with other people before, from the dinner that Prim had made to the gentle pride that he saw Katniss have for her sister, he wondered if he had been too cold to his siblings, if those were bridges that he should begin to bridge later with his parents. That next night, Peeta had sat down with the whole family, letting everyone air out their opinions and encouraging his mother, that even though she had been cruel, that he genuinely wanted her to get better and to feel loved.

His mother seemed like a ghost half of the time now, but shy and bashful the other half, almost like a wounded animal, learning to trust the new owners. Abandoned and abused dogs could eat like they had been starved, for years, due to bad treatment from previous owners. The heart, Peeta knew, was a mysterious matter. He knew that the consequences were going to catch up to his mother. He hoped, maybe, that she could find herself again, could ask their forgiveness for the way that she had acted, and that one day they might be able to find a good rhythm again.

He had set her up with a counselor, as well as his father with another counselor, so that they could work through their issues individually at first, before learning to work through them together. He told both of the counselors, in depth, about the situation, and though they suggested that he undergo counseling as well, Peeta was waiting to see if he could know the person he needed to forgive. They had both agreed, at Peeta's request to meet with both his parents at some point in the future, saying that it would take a while to restore the balance in their relationship.

Peeta, however, already saw the changes happening in his father. He saw his father taking care of his mother, making sure that she ate, that she was encouraged, and that she slept enough. At moments, Peeta knew that the fear of the abuse would return, but it had only been a few days and Peeta was honestly surprised that his father was a good enough person to endure life with his mother this way.

His father, Peeta knew, was a good man. He was better than Peeta at dealing with the pain that his mother had caused them both and Peeta saw so much that he could learn from them both about pursuing a relationship with one Katniss Everdeen.

On Tuesday, Peeta asked Katniss when she was free that week. She blushed and he smiled.

"Well.." she said, "I'm free tonight, but I would need to see if Madge or Gale could hang out with Prim while I'm gone. Why?"

"Well.." he mimicked her slightly, "I'm free tonight, too, and I wanted to see if you will go out with me tonight." He held his breath, somehow finding himself unsure of her answer. It had only been a few days, but the time that had passed had made him anxious, as if he needed to act on this before it stopped being real.

He saw her face light up. "I would love that," she said, shyly. He didn't know what he had ever done to deserve a chance with Katniss, but he wasn't going to mess it up. He knew that much at the very least.

"How does dinner and a movie sound?" he asked, hearing what could only being a maniac smile in his voice. He knew that he was excited, but Peeta felt like he was on the verge of acting like Delly Cartwright and scaring her away.

"Could we have Chinese food?" she questioned, as if he wouldn't give her anything she wanted. He laughed at her lack of knowledge of just how far he would be willing to go to keep her at his side, healthy, happy, and his, if she chose to be.

"Sure." He thought it best to try to at least sound casual, even if nothing he felt for her was in any possible way casual.

"Great!" Her eyes lit up. She leaned in, whispering to him, "I seriously love Chinese food, but we don't really get to have it much."

He smiled. "And you know that I am paying for everything right?" If she thought that she would let her pay for anything, she was wrong, so completely wrong.

"Yes," she said, grudgingly, as if he was making a little girl promise to do her homework. He found himself laughing at her stubbornness.

"Good."

"Can I pay for the next one?" she said, curious. He looked at her, knowing he wouldn't be able to live with himself if he let her do that.

"No." He shook his head, vehemently, trying to show her how completely opposed he was to the idea. "I pay, you be yourself, and it will all have been so completely worth every penny."

"Myself, huh? So, I could theoretically wear sweats and you'd still take me out?"

"You act like that is a question that actually deserves an answer." He heard Gale laugh, walking up behind him.

"She is something else, isn't she?" Gale laughed again, going over to toussle Katniss' hair and giving him a fist bump.

Peeta sighed. "Believe me, I know." She glared, still waiting for him to answer.

"Katniss," Peeta said, "I think you are beautiful in everything. I'd be crazy to say no to you, just because you wanted to be comfortable and wear sweats."

She chuckled. "So, I get to wear whatever I want?"

"Yup," he said. "You wear whatever you want, you pick the restaurant or the movie if you want. As long as I get to pay for it," he smiled, "and you are there, I'm a happy guy."

Gale's mouth dropped open. He turned to Katniss. "You're letting him pay?"

She nodded, blushing.

"Wow, man. You have skills." Gale shook his head, as if he couldn't believe the powers that Peeta possessed.

Peeta laughed. "She deserves nothing less." He smiled at her, enjoying the blush on her face, enjoying the fact that she had said yes to him of all people.

Her phone rang and she rolled her eyes. She pulled it out, looked at the phone and said, "It's Prim." Her tone was worried, which was fair, as it was the middle of the day.

"What's up, Prim?"

"Hey, Katniss." He could barely hear, but he called, "Hey, Prim!" Gale called, "Hello!"

Prim said something and Katniss looked to Gale, then to Peeta.

"Prim," she said, "pack your stuff. We are going to stay with Madge tonight, okay?"

Katniss nodded, saying, "I have a date with Peeta tonight, but I'll meet you at home soon, as soon as I tell Madge. Okay? Lock the door and stay away from the windows. I'll there soon. It'll be okay, Prim, I promise." He heard her voice become gentle and soothing, but toward the end, her fierce protective tone was apparent. "Bye, Prim."

She hung up and looked to Gale. "He's back. Where is Madge?"

Gale said, "I think she was coming here, but she had to stop at her"- the cafeteria door opened and they looked to see Madge with a panicked look on her face. She held a white rose in her hand and Katniss and Gale looked horrified. Peeta followed as they rushed to meet Madge at the door, utterly confused.

"Katniss, I'm so sorry. I found this on my doorstep this morning and I.."

"Prim found one, too, Madge. We all three need to find another place to stay tonight."

"I can get us a hotel room. Let me call my dad, okay?"

She rushed out of the cafeteria, already dialing.

"Peeta, I can't go out with you tonight. I'm so sorry." Tears were pooling in her eyes.

"Katniss, are you okay?" He felt worry gripping his chest. "What can I do to help? I can bring you Chinese food."

She smiled a weak smile and said, "Can you take me home? I need to get Prim, I need to make sure she is safe."

"Sure, sure." He said it, already looking to Gale for confirmation on whether or not he wanted to come.

Gale just nodded. Peeta didn't expect that he would want to leave any of these girls behind when that look was on Gale's face.

"Katniss, can you explain this to me, though? I want to help, but I need to know what we are up against. I know it's deeply emotional," he assured, wiping away the tears falling down her face, "I just need to know the clip notes version."

She nodded, saying, "I have dated before Peeta." Gale froze up, anger on his face. "The guy, he-" Peeta saw the fear in her eyes, in the eyes of the girl who was afraid of nothing. She started to shake and he said nothing, just walking forward and pulling her into his arms, letting her cry and shake as he held her. He looked to Gale, for him to finish.

"He was a seemingly good guy at first," Gale said, "but soon he was very possessive. He followed her everywhere, always needing to know where she was and what she was doing." Peeta shuddered slightly, holding Katniss tighter.

"Katniss stopped seeing him, but he still wouldn't leave her alone." Gale's jaw clenched. "He started leaving her.. white roses." Peeta understood now, why Katniss would hate roses, why Madge would have warned him. "She got a restraining order, but he wouldn't stop. The police wouldn't do anything, until.."

"Until what, Gale?" Peeta heard the rage in his voice, the rage over what had happened to her.

"Until he raped me." He heard Katniss whisper, the words not computing in his head, the concept not bearable, not acceptable.

He felt himself tear up, angry, protective. "Oh.." he tried putting words to it. Eventually he just said, "I am so sorry, Katniss. You are so valuable, so precious. That.. that cruel person who did that to you- he is the worthless one." She looked up at him, doubtful. He leaned forward, kissed her forehead.

"Whatever you need," he said quietly, "I will get it to you. I won't let this person hurt you and neither will Gale." He said it, heard the determination in his voice.

"I should have told you," she said, looking down.

He leaned closer to her, trying to let her understand. "You don't have to tell me anything you don't want to tell me."

She looked up. Peeta continued, looking her in the eyes. "The woman I know is a victor, rising above wave after wave of terrible horrors."

She tilted her head, leaning on his chest again.

He continued. "Katniss, you are so strong. You are the strongest woman I know." He kissed her head. "It is an honor, a privilege to be your friend, and it is a gift beyond words that you want to date me." He smiled, "That you are going to let me buy you Chinese food and bring the movie night to you guys, wherever you're going. If it makes you feel better, we'll sleep on the floor," he looked to Gale. "We will keep you safe, I promise."

"Katniss," Gale said, "Peeta is right. You have us, we'll sleep on the floor." Gale smiled sadly at Peeta, "We'll even watch a chick flick if it makes you feel better."

Peeta felt Katniss fake gag against him and he laughed. She looked up and he wiped her tears away. "I'm here, I'm ready," Madge walked back in to the cafeteria, looking at them with a grim smile on her face. "Let's go get Prim and some Chinese food." Katniss smiled. He wrapped his arm over her shoulder and asked if she needed anything from her locker. She shook her head, so he walked her out to his car, not expecting to see the white rose on his windshield.

He looked to Katniss, unafraid, and said, "Look. Free potpourri." Then, he tore the rose to shreds in his hands, leaving it on the ground. He opened her door and Gale climbed in the back and she laughed. Peeta decided that he wouldn't waste any of his time, being afraid of a coward.


	13. The Unknown (and Katniss)

**Disclaimer: It's going to get a little dark this chapter, but just hold on, no one is going to die. Fanfiction is supposed to be a little happier than that, right? This chapter holds the viewpoints of the unknown character and Katniss, though two new characters are coming in the next few chapters: I'll give you a hint- many consider one of them to be a fresh breath of Odair. ;) It's Finnick get crazy up in here.**

 **Sorry, I'll stop with the puns. Honestly though, it probably couldn't Annie worse. Dang it. I did it again.**

 **Hope you all enjoy the plot twists, because they are just as nerve wracking to me as I'm sure they are to you. PLEASE REVIEW. I know you viewers are out there and I'd love to hear YOUR lovely voices. Thanks a million!**

 **DOUBLE DISCLAIMER (ALL CAPS): THIS FANFICTION DOES NOT CONDONE OR APPROVE OF SEXUAL VIOLENCE IN ANY WAY. INSTEAD, PEETA AND GALE, GOOD GUYS, ARE MEANT TO BE THE FOIL OF THE IDIOT THAT IS THE UNKNOWN CHARACTER. IT'S DISTURBING, BUT THAT IS THE AWFULNESS OF THE CHARACTER BLEEDING THROUGH. IF IT BOTHERS YOU TOO MUCH, ALL ESSENTIAL STORY POINTS ARE GOING TO BE COVERED OUTSIDE THE UNKNOWN PERSPECTIVE.**

 **I'm sorry for the delay and here we go!**

 **Enjoy!**

Chapter 13- The Unknown

He walked to the stop sign, taking in a deep breath. Of course, he had a warrant out for his arrest, but they hadn't caught him yet.

He had been so disappointed to find out that Kat was so cruel, that she had turned him in and tried to leave him behind. Of course, he'd thought that she would come to her senses and return to him. She was his after all. It had only been a few weeks since he had found the Everdeens again and he wanted to see if she had listened to him the last time, when he had told her to stay away from the Hawthorne boy.

She should have known that he was serious. He looked back on the last night that they had spent together. He knew that though she had protested, that truly, she loved him. She had been so nice and willing to love him the way that he had wanted, until the boy had come along and convinced his darling otherwise. He had made his darling girl file a restraining order.

He knew, however, that she would never forget the night that they spent together. He knew that he wouldn't. He licked his lips, trying to recall, with accuracy, the way her lips tasted, the feeling that he had had when they had made love. She had screamed, but how could she want anyone but him, when truly, they were meant to be together, to be one for the rest of their lives.

He would win her back, he knew it, as long as he could take the boy out of the picture. He had followed her home from school one day, when she had decided to walk the route, instead of taking the bus. He had smiled. She knew that he would come for her. This was her submission, her admitting her need for him.

He had come only to watch her house. To see, if the boy would come, if he would be alone, if the other girl was still around. They did come, but what he hadn't expected was the blond boy in the blue Impala. This boy he'd never seen before. Rage filled his mind at the concept of his dear Katniss being wooed by mere boys. He would fix that soon.

He'd waited a few days, so he could track them all back to their homes, to tell them that he had arrived. He'd meant to trail the blond boy, but the best that he had been able to do, after losing the boy in traffic, was place the rose on the windshield of his car at the school that morning.

Soon, and very soon, she would be his again.

KATNISS knew that he couldn't have left her alone for forever, but she had been afraid that this news would scare off Peeta or make him disgusted with her. If anything, he only seemed more open about how much he cared about her than anything else.

He made her feel a little at ease, even in the midst of all of the craziness. It's not like she would tell him that, but she couldn't help but want him around. His protective instincts made her feel safe, made her want to put all of this behind her. In the car, she called the police non-emergency number.

Katniss hated talking to the police, if for no other reason than wishing that she could have solved all of this on her own. She was used to being the person who solved problems, not the person who was duped.

She looked at Peeta as he drove them to her house. Madge was in the backseat, with a faraway look on her face. Gale was following behind them in Madge's car, because she had wanted to ride with Katniss.

They seemed worried, but Katniss was focused again, worried for Prim and for her friends, which thankfully meant that she was able to still the swells of panic inside herself.

Peeta's face, stern but composed, was relatively calm as he drove. She wondered what he could be thinking about, if he had meant the things that he had said earlier on, if there was any way that all of this could finally come to an end. He seemed to radiate a protectiveness that she didn't really understand, as it was directed toward her. She had felt strange these last few days, being driven to school by Peeta, knowing that they were more than friends, but not officially dating or whatever they were doing.

Still, in the last few days, Katniss had felt a little less stressed and pleasantly surprised at how good it felt for the first time in a long, being taken care of by someone who really cared. Peeta was always a gentleman, opening her doors and happy to go out of his way to help her with the even the smallest of her problems. But this, well, this was enough to crash even a mature relationship and they had never even been on a date.

She thought back to the days when she had met Richard, how nice he'd been to her, but she could distinguish the little differences between the jerk she'd hoped in and the gentleman sitting beside her. Peeta would go to the moon and back and thank her for letting him help her, where Rick would've never let her live it down. Rick would tell her that she was beautiful, but there was a possessive longing there that never belonged. Peeta never seemed to stop complimenting her, but was ever nonchalant about it, as if it was nothing but the truth. Rick always expected her to drool all over him, where Peeta was genuinely pleased and surprised when she thanked him or praised him in any way. She knew, of course, that his history with his mother did nothing to help him believe the myriad of ways that he was already one of the best men she'd ever known. Peeta, in short, left Richard stranded in Peeta's dust.

They pulled up to the house and she took a deep breath, panic briefly getting the best of her when she saw the white roses on the doorstep, the curtains closed, the house looking small and desolate. She felt a hand on her shoulder, heard Madge say, "We've got you Katniss, don't worry." Peeta smiled at her, getting out to walk around and open her door. She took another deep, calming breath when she heard the door open on her right. She looked to him and got out of the car. She smiled shakily at him, doing her best to be okay for him, for her friends, for Prim. He leaned closer and whispered, "I know you want to be strong for Prim, but she is strong already." He smiled, a proud look in his eyes, "So, know that you can be strong, but that no one expects you to be unaffected by this. We want you to let us in, not shut us out." He leaned back out and spoke louder, "Okay?"

She smirked, knowing that Peeta was fully aware that she couldn't just do that. "I'll try."

He grew serious for a moment and said, "Let's go to Prim and call the police. Okay?" He smiled. "As soon as that is taken care of, I have a few ideas about what we should all do tonight." She loved how, even in this moment, when she could tell that he was concerned, that he was able to be playful and mischievous, planning silly outings and possibly even pranks on her friends.

"Are you okay?" she asked him, just knowing that any moment this was all going to be too much and he would flee the scene, tired of all of this trouble just for her.

He laughed as Madge and Gale just smirked, a confused look in their eyes.

"So, your stalker reemerges, leaves flowers everywhere, and here you are, trying to worry about me?" He laughed again, more softly this time. "You're an amazing woman, Katniss, but it is just downright ridiculous for you to worry about me in all of this. If anything, I'm relishing the opportunity that I now have for Gale and I to take this crappy humanoid out of existence."

Gale smiled grimly, nodding, as if he was ready to go hunting, a fierce look in his eyes. Katniss imagined Gale and Peeta going after Richard, about either one of them getting hurt because of her.

She flinched, then pleaded, "Please no, if either of you were to get hurt... because of me... If I had just been strong enough to-"

Gale, Madge, and Peeta half yelled, "No!" She was a little taken aback.

"Katniss, don't you even dare try to blame yourself for any of this."

She had turned back to look at Madge and Gale, so she hadn't noticed Prim opening the door and Prim's voice seemed to bring her up out of her dazed focus on the situation at hand. She swung on her feet to see Prim walking toward her. Without realizing she was even doing it, Katniss had quickly covered the distance between her and Prim, gripping her in a tight hug, and asking, tears in her eyes, "Prim, are you okay? Did you see him? Did you call Mom?"

She pulled back to look at Prim's face, which looked strangely mature for such a young girl.

"He didn't come near me, but I saw him watching across the street when I opened the door. I immediately shut the door, locked it, and called you. Then I called Mom and then the police and they said to call when you got home, because you know more about it, but I have seen a squad car roaming around the block a few times since I called you."

Katniss felt her eyes narrow, "But are you okay?"

"I am now that you are with me. Our house is not big, but it feels huge when a jerk leaves threatening roses on your doorstep." Prim sighed. "We get to leave now, right?"

Peeta smiled wickedly, turning from Madge and Gale, back to her and Prim. "I have a plan. You up for a party tonight, Primrose Everdeen?"

Prim smiled, looking to Katniss, a question in her eyes. "What kind of party?"

"A surprise PAR-TAY!" Peeta drew out the word and they all laughed, except for Katniss.

"Madge," Peeta said, a devilish grin on his face, "Why don't you inform Prim and Gale and I will keep Katniss from overhearing you." Gale grinned and Prim eagerly rushed past Katniss to Madge, having fun with the game.

When Prim was out of earshot, Peeta told Katniss, "So, we need to update the police, at which point, we are going to have a night of fun and splendor."

"And before you ask, Katniss," Gale said, towering over me, so that I could not lean over to try to overhear the whispers coming from the pile of girly excitement a few feet away, "YES, there is going to be fun AND splendor, no exceptions." She sighed.

Peeta and Gale both laughed, as if there was nothing to be worried about besides a cool party and the paper that they had due that Friday.

She couldn't help but smile at the idea of spending the night with everyone. "Do I still get Chinese food?"

Peeta chuckled. "Yes, my lady, you shall have Chinese food tonight!"

Gale looked back and forth between them, seeming confused.

"Keep her busy, Gale; I need to ask Prim something really quick." Peeta jogged over a few feet and the pile turned into a huddle, Peeta the obvious leader.

"You really like him, don't you, Katniss?" She felt herself blush.

"Yeah, I kind of do."

Gale grinned. "I know, I'm happy for you. You seem to be more relaxed whenever he is around."

Katniss sighed. It was time to call the police.

 **I'll have another chapter in a few days. Hope you enjoyed the update. :) Let me know what you think.**


	14. Chapter 14: The Lucky Kat

**Hey Everyone! I know that it has been a long time since I have written, but there has been too much going on in my personal life. I'm sorry, but I am back and I cannot wait to start writing again.**

 **I hope that you enjoy this chapter and that you will comment on the chapter, PLEASE GIMME YOUR FEEDBACK.**

Chapter 14- The Lucky Kat

Gale understood everything that Kat was saying through her body language right now. It took him back to the night that she told him, the night that she entrusted him with the information, the secret, the blasphemy of the fact that the nimrod had raped her, had taken advantage of his best friend. He saw the way that she was closing herself off to everyone, the way only Prim was truly breaking through the barriers he saw going up around her.

Honestly, he was always impressed by the amount of strength and fortitude that she had displayed for them. Kat may not always be an open book, but her loyalty and the way that she was constantly looking out for the people that she loved was inspiring. He was also impressed by the side of Peeta that came out in response to her sorrow and shame earlier. The way he comforted her by encouraging the good in her and not the tragedy that had happened to her. Given the number of ways that he could have responded to her, this day, more than any other in Gale's opinion, showed how much he cared for Kat. He knew that she must be afraid of so many things that she wouldn't say out loud. Afraid, that like almost every other man in her life, he wouldn't be around for long after knowing this about her.

Peeta, however. Gale knew as a guy who was in it for the long haul. If anything, he seemed to respect Katniss and care for her more now than he had this morning. Gale was all for the party plan, or as Peeta had code named it, the Lucky Kat. Sure, the party had to be slightly different now that they couldn't celebrate at Kat's home, but somehow, someway- they were going to see this through.

Gale looked down to see the look of mixed compassion and fierce loyalty on Madge's face. He knew that Katniss had a way of inspiring everyone around her to love her, but he admired this part of Madge. Her loyalty was one of the most attractive parts of her character to him.

PEETA looked back to Gale, sensing some deeper connection with Gale than he had had before today. They both cared deeply about Katniss and maybe that was why he knew that neither himself nor Gale were going to let this become a setback for Katniss and her party, anymore than they were willing to let than scumbag dictate her life. He smiled, looking at Katniss arm in arm with Prim.

Prim was saying, "Strange having to go through this again huh?"

Katniss responded, "We are not going to have to move again, Prim. I promise."

Peeta could see the same fire in Madge's eyes that he saw in Kat's and he was so grateful that he would be able to help her through this. He wished that none of this would have ever been necessary, but he also knew that he had no intention of letting this crazed lunatic hurt her ever again.

Peeta said, "Okay Prim, Lucky Kat has changed a little, but you know what she needs now. Take her inside and go pack enough clothes for any situation for a few days."

Prim smiled, a little light back in her eyes, "Right." She started to drag her sister towards their house, fire in her steps, and Katniss looked back at him with the fiercest look of exasperation that he had ever seen on her face. He smiled, "See you soon, Lucky Kat." She sighed and complained to Prim. "I don't want a party.." Kat moaned dramatically and Prim laughed.

"Well, that is just too bad!" Prim giggled. "Right, Peeta?"

"Absolutely right, Everdeen."

Kat chuckled and Peeta's heart warmed a little, at the hope that maybe his plan would show her that one, he wasn't about to go anywhere without her, and two, the jerk had no control over her life or her happiness.

OUTSIDE

Peeta walked over to Gale and Madge.

"Okay, this is going to be interesting, but I have promised Katniss Chinese food and a movie night, so what have we got?"

Madge smiled and Peeta could tell that she was bursting with ideas.

"Well we could do a mix of Kat's favorite movies of all time- which I have most of at my house."

"Check that off then," Peeta said.

Madge stopped him before he could move on to the next step.

"Weren't you and Katniss supposed to go out tonight?"

"Yeah- it was going to be our first time, but I don't want to put any pressure on her right now."

Gale snorted. "Sorry man, but that is kind of stupid."

"What?" Peeta asked.

"Yeah, it is a nice gesture, but she is going to think that you are hesitating about dating her."

"That's ridiculous; I'm crazy about her, everyone knows that."

"I'm just saying that you guys shouldn't cancel, just shake it up a little bit. What were you going to do tonight?"

Peeta smiled. "Chinese and then go to the movies- she had been talking about one she wanted to see."

Madge gasped. "I have the perfect idea."

Peeta looked confused, but interested. "Continue."

"I will get some friends to make a reservation for you at the restaurant and you will just go to the opposite movie theatre of the one that she would usually choose."

"What friend?" Peeta asked, wondering if he knew them.

"Let me get everything handled and then you can worry about it. Do you have a change of clothes?"

Peeta smiled. "Yeah, I had it in the trunk, so that we would have plenty of time."

Gale smiled, "Then, it is simple. Madge, go tell Prim so that Katniss will have everything that she needs and we'll give her a girls day to remember."

Peeta chuckled, thinking about the reaction that Kat would have to a day at a spa or getting her nails done. "Better yet, Madge, don't tell her. Take her shopping."

Madge's eyes lit up. "Yes! I've been dying to get new clothes for that girl for ages."

Peeta chuckled, "But- say it with me- she has to like the clothes too."

Madge sighed, "She has to like the clothes too."

Peeta said, "If money is a problem or a concern, I am more than happy to foot the bill."

Madge laughed, "Please boy, I have at least five birthdays to catch up on in one day."

INSIDE

PRIM found herself in front of a nervous Katniss. "Kat, what's up?"

Katniss seemed to be stressing about clothes, which she never did.

"Well, tonight was supposed to be our first date, and even though we aren't doing anything now, I wanted to look.. better than usual. I want to put a little effort into it."

Prim smiled, totally fascinated by her sister's response. "Peeta thinks that you look great in everything. You could wear a trash bag and he would think that you were gorgeous."

"You say that, but.." Kat hesitated. Prim realized what her sister's problem really was.

"He doesn't see you any differently today than he did yesterday. That boy is C-R-A-Z-Y about you." Prim sighed. "You deserve a guy like him Katniss. You deserve to be happy, like the beautiful, smart, amazing person that you are." Prim wanted to plead with Kat and tell her just how amazing she was when Kay just sat down and sighed.

"You think so?" There was a dim hope in her eyes.

"What did Peeta say when he found out?"

"That I was strong, that I was beautiful, that I am good enough." Prim heard her sister's voice torn between belief and hope and sarcasm.

"He's right. Good for him," Prim said, completely convinced that no one could sensibly think any differently about her sister than she did.

"Prim- I would have to be silly to think that he isn't appalled by me now, to think that he sees me as the same person that I was to him yesterday." Kat looked down. "I don't know whether he is just being the good person that Peeta is, and sticking through it, even though he would rather run away."

Prim sighed. "You can't think that way Kat. If you think that way, the jerk wins. If you think that way, then you're never going to give Peeta the chance that he really deserves whenever you do have that first date, because if I know Peeta like I think that I do, that boy isn't going to let you go any time soon. I wouldn't be surprised if he simply sees you for who you are and what you've been through and is more attracted to you than he was before."

Kat smiled. "He really is a fantastic guy, Prim. He is so kind and honest and generous." Kat smiled and Prim was so happy that Peeta had come into Kat's life. She was happy knowing that someone out there saw her sister for the amazing person that she was, and not the crappy things that had happened to her.

They went back and forth on outfits for a little while, thinking about which outfits looked the best on her when Madge came in, smiling from ear to ear. Only two things made Madge that happy: Books or Gale.

"Are you girls ready to go yet?" Madge had a twinkle in her eye and Prim had a suspicion or three that Peeta was responsible. His mischievous nature seemed contagious... and AWESOME.

Kat grimaced. "I guess we're as ready as we are ever going to be." Kat took a deep breath and they walked toward the door where Madge stood, still stoked.

"Okay," Kat said, "why are you so happy? It is freaking me out a little bit."

Madge smiled wider, if that was even possible. "Peeta gave me permission to give you a girl's day out."

Kat's eyes widened in horror and then she said, "Are my clothes that bad?" She looked down, seemingly crushed.

"Ummm that boy likes you in everything and he made me promise that I would make sure that you liked everything that we picked out."

Kat smiled a little. "Then why?"

"Well," she said happily, "you have a date tonight, obviously!"

Kat's face went blank. "He still wants to date me?" She hesitated. "What if he is just trying to be nice?"

Prim and Madge rolled their eyes. When would Katniss Everdeen ever realize? "He likes you," Madge said. "Trust me."

Prim said, "Katniss, as always, Peeta is ten steps of you, knowing exactly what he should do to make you feel better. The boy is gifted."

Madge looked at Katniss and said, "Don't worry, all you have to do is let me pay for everything and for us to have all kinds of fun."

OUTSIDE

Gale and Peeta were smiling, satisfied that most of the details for the party had been confirmed. Rue would know where the party was by tomorrow morning and Peeta called his father while Gale called his and Madge's old friends to arrange everything for tonight.

Peeta: Hey Dad, there is a guy that has threatened Katniss in the past and he is back until the police catch him. So, Madge's dad, the mayor, is putting all of us up in some nice hotel rooms for the weekend. I just wanted to let you know that the police have been contacted and that I am okay.

Mr. Mellark: Peeta, are you all safe?

Peeta: Yes, Dad. Don't worry, we are just taking all of the necessary precautions for Katniss and her sister.

Mr. Mellark: Okay, but I want to be updated at every turn. I want to know where you are staying.

Peeta: Alright, Dad.

Gale: Hey Annie!

Annie: Gale! How is it going?

Gale: It's going okay. Listen, I was going to ask you guys a big favor.

Annie: Sure, just let me put you on speaker.

Annie: Okay, go ahead.

Finnick: Hello Gale!

Gale: Hey Finnick! You guys know about what Katniss went through a few years ago. Well, the jerk is back and I need to ask you guys to do something for me.

Finnick: Okay. Name it.

Gale: I need you to let me put some reservations down in your name at this Chinese place for Katniss and Peeta and I need you guys to come to the birthday party tomorrow.

Finnick: That's it?

Gale: Yeah, pretty much.

Annie: That's barely even a favor, much less a big favor.

Finnick: What if you threw the party at my place?

Gale: That might be a good idea. We already have everything: decorations, and food, and the cake, we just need a place. So, I mean, if you are cool with it.

Finnick and Annie: Of course we are.

Gale: Awesome, I'll tell Peeta. See you guys later then.

INSIDE

Katniss: So you are saying that I have to wear brand new girly stuff that you are going to buy and I have next to no say in the matter.

Madge: Pretty much.

Prim: You get to pick what you like though!

Kat: Okay, but if you guys make me look silly, I will haunt you for the rest of your lives.

Prim: You have to die to haunt people.

Kat: And if I look dumb, I will die of embarrassment. Death problem solved. Choose wisely.


	15. Chapter 15: Before the Time Runs Out

**THIS CHAPTER IS NOT A COMMENTARY ON THE EXPERIENCE OF ANY VICTIM OF SEXUAL VIOLENCE. MORE SO, THE FEELINGS THAT KATNISS HAS, WHILE LEGITIMATE, DO NOT LEGITIMIZE HER FEELINGS ABOUT HER SELF WORTH. THESE WERE HER THOUGHTS ON THE DARKEST NIGHT AND IF YOU HAVE ANY NEGATIVE THINGS TO SAY ABOUT VICTIMS OF VIOLENCE, SHOVE OFF BECAUSE THIS FANFIC SUPPORTS WOMEN AND THEIR VALUE. Katniss is not a weak woman and it is not her fault.**

 **Okay, disclaimer over. There is nothing graphic here, just the emotional side of the experience. If you don't feel comfortable reading the flashback, feel free to skip past it. It simply provides a little extra view into her mind and gives some insight to the character relationships and plot.**

Chapter 15- Before the Time Runs Out

Katniss locked her front door and linked arms with the girls. The luggage was out of their hands from the moment that they had stepped out of the doors. The boys had taken the luggage to the trunk of Peeta's car before the door had officially been locked and the keys had made their way into her pocket. The front yard was small, but they were sending a message.

"We can carry our own clothes you know," Katniss complained. The boys laughed as if she was just absolutely hilarious. Katniss turned around to look at the front porch, trying to remember what this house had looked like before they had painted the wood and planted a garden under the front windows. Madge and Prim walked over to Gale as they saw Peeta walking over to Katniss.

She looked over to see a concerned Peeta and chuckled. "Why are you worried this time?" she asked.

"I was just wondering about something you said to Prim earlier. I don't know if I was supposed to hear the comment or not, but when did you move here?"

She sighed and looked up. The blue sky was surprisingly vast and wide open today, with no clouds in sight. It was so unlike that night, or rather that early morning. She had done the same thing then. Of course, she had walked to a different house that day, but the same home.

"After.. after he vanished."

"How long ago was it?" he asked her gently. She paused and he said, "I'm sorry Katniss. You don't have to tell me anything unless you want to." He looked down and started to walk away when she said, "It was two years ago, Peeta."

Her mind took her back to her childhood home, the cute house with bright yellow trim, white walls, and the door her dad had marked her height on every year.

"Madge transferred here two years ago, which is when we went from acquaintances to best friends, and Gale already went to the school when I transferred there."

Katniss still remembered the door, looking down at her feet, and the way the knock had taken forever.

 _Katniss walked home, sore, feeling broken. Her mind was on autopilot and she could barely remember the journey that she had taken to get here. He must have knocked her out at some point, or maybe she had simply passed out from the pain, the fear, the... weakness._

 _It was early in the morning with nothing and nobody out on the streets. She saw her house a few feet away and paused, looking down. Her shirt was torn and since she'd worn a shorter skirt than usual, she could see the bruises forming on her legs. How could she not have seen this coming? How had she thought that the order would have been enough to make him go away?_

 _Why had she ever even talked to- she couldn't say his name. What would she say?_

 _The grass needs to be cut, she thought, it looks a little tall._

 _What if he is still watching me?_

 _Maybe we could repaint the shutters and the trim._

 _Will I ever be safe again, even here?_

 _Will I ever be safe again anywhere?_

 _She felt nothing as she walked up to the door, not knowing what she was going to face inside. She looked down at her feet, noticed that she was missing a shoe. She lifted her hand to knock, which felt like a small eternity._

 _Knock. What if no one ever wants me?_

 _Knock. What if I am disgusting now?_

 _Knock. What if I am worthless?_

 _Has he made me worthless? Suddenly, she had the desire to run away, to hide from everyone, to never tell anyone, to keep it all inside. Then she wouldn't risk losing anyone. She could be worthless without anyone ever knowing._

 _The door opened and Prim was on the other side, her smile, fading into nothingness._

 _Prim grabbed her in a hug and Katniss winced, sore from head to toe, sore in places that she hadn't known existed._

 _Prim let go and grabbed her hand, pulling her into the living room. The light made her bruises obvious, as noticeable as the difference between white and purple. Katniss thanked God that Prim could not see her arms under the jacket that she wore loosely around her shoulders._

 _Gale must have heard Prim answer the door, because he opened the door to the kitchen and came out, dropping the plate of oven fresh cookies on the floor. The paper plate fell and Gale rushed to Katniss who seemed to have fallen as well. Maybe her knees had given out, she thought._

 _I can't run away, she thought, or Prim will be alone. I have to help Prim, I have to help Prim, I have to help Prim, she thought over and over as Gale picked her up and sat her on the couch as gently as humanly possible._

 _"Oh Katniss," Prim said, her voice breaking. "We thought you were at Madge's, that you just forgot to call. Mom called Gale because she was called into work and.." Prim trailed off. "I'm so sorry." Prim's eyes filled with tears and Katniss said, "It' snot your fault Prim, it' smine," she said, the words slurring from her tiredness._

 _Gale said something to Prim and she rushed to the phone. "Lay down Katnip," he said, "I'm right here, you're safe now. Go to sleep."_

 _"He know swhere we lif, he nos were we-" The next thing she knew, she heard Prim say hello to someone at the door and she woke up._

 _"Prim!" she said, frightened for Prim, not knowing who was there._

 _Prim opened the door and Kat saw that two police officers were at the door, both women._

 _She wondered briefly why they were there and then everything rushed back to her. The pain, emotional and otherwise flooded her again and she couldn't breathe._

 _"Katnip, it's okay. I'm here." She looked over and saw Gale. She breathed again. Gale would protect her and Prim she thought. She was safe, if only for now._

 _She sat all the way up and Prim came to sit by her side. They held her up as the police began to ask her questions._

 _"Hello ma'am, we're officers Marshall and Ramirez," Officer Marshall said pointing to herself and the lady who Kat guessed was her partner. "We need to ask you some questions." Kat nodded numbly, her tiredness starting to seep back into her head and body._

 _"Gale, can you make Katniss a cup of coffee?" Prim asked. "Make enough for the officers if they want some."_

 _Officer Ramirez told Gale to give her a cup, too, and the conversation continued._

 _"Ma'am," Officer Ramirez asked, "What is your name?"_

 _Prim looked to Kat, concerned._

 _Kat answered, "Katniss, Katniss Everdeen."_

 _Ramirez smiled and nodded, while Officer Marshall wrote everything down. "What happened last night, Ms. Everdeen?"_

 _She grabbed a orangey pillow from the couch and said to the officers, "I was coming home from Madge's party and.." She looked over to Gale who was coming with the coffee, nodding to Prim, a desperate look on her face. She couldn't tell Prim yet, she needed to be strong, she couldn't tell her yet._

 _Gale looked at Prim, then to Katniss, and then said, "I'll be right back." He set down the coffee and whispered in Prim's ear. Prim looked to Katniss, saw her desperation and nodded, only because she wouldn't argue when her sister would tell her later, in her own time._

 _Gale sat next to Kat, and after she'd taken a few swigs of her coffee, Prim had made it to her room._

 _"Would you mind if we recorded this meeting?" the officer asked. "No one but us will ever hear the recording unless you say so."_

 _Katniss nodded her consent and the officer started the recording.  
"Ma'am would you please state your name for the recording?"  
_

 _"Katniss Everdeen," she said._

 _"What happened on the night of August twelfth through the early morning of August thirteenth?"_

 _"Well, school is out," Katniss started, "so I went to a friend's party."_

 _"Did you drink anything at the party?"_

 _"A few sodas and maybe half a bottle of water."  
"Did you drink any alcohol?"_

 _"No."_

 _"Did you do any drugs?"_

 _"No."_

 _"Okay. Continue, please."_

 _"I left the party and headed to the bus stop."_

 _"What time did you leave? Was it late at night?"_

 _"No, I think I left around five thirty because the last bus came at six and I didn't want to miss it and have to walk home."_

 _"Okay, so then what happened?"_

 _"I was almost to the bus stop when someone pulled me from behind, by my hood, into the alley. He turned me around and..."_

 _She looked at Gale. "Gale, I tried. He was just so strong and I was off balance. I kicked and I bit him once, but i don't know if he pushed me or I fell, but I hit my head and... I'm so sorry, Gale. I tried, I tried, I tried so, so hard." She started to cry and Gale's face was struck with horror, his eyes a mix of rage and despair._

 _"Ma'am," Officer Ramirez said, "who is the he that you were referring to in the last sentence or so.."_

 _"I'm afraid," she said softly, to Gale, "what if he comes back?"_

 _"The imbecile, the lowlife that she is referring to is Richard Evans." He shuddered with anger and Katniss could feel the heat coming off of him in waves. She was so cold._

 _The officer said calmly, "Miss Everdeen, can you confirm that this Richard Evans is the man that pulled you into the alley last night after you left the party?"_

 _"Yes, it was.." she gulped, "Richard Evans."_

 _"So, he pulled you there, and then?"_

 _"I slapped him and told him that I never wanted to see him again."_

 _"Who is Richard Evans to you?"_

 _She felt it all starting to pour out of her, hoping, praying that if she explained it well enough, that they wouldn't blame her as much as she did._

 _"He was my boyfriend, but he was very possessive and mean. Gale convinced me that I should and could break up with him, so I did. He wouldn't stop following me, he refused to stay away, putting flowers on my door, and acting like we had never broken up." She sighed. "I put a restraining order on him, hoping that he would go away, hoping that it would end, but it obviously didn't. Last night, after I slapped him, he punched me and grabbed my hair. He kept kissing me, and I tried to pull away, but he had pulled my hair so tight.. He pulled me further into the alley and I fell behind a dumpster. Like I said, I can't remember how I fell, but my head was hurting and I was so dizzy and weak." She looked to Gale, pleading, begging for him to understand. "I bit him and tried to kick him off, but he was so heavy... And then, he raped me."_

 _She hung her head, sobbing, shaking, feeling so useless and weak. " I tried so hard, Gale, so hard."_

 _Tears streamed down her face and a tear slipped from his eyes. "Katnip, this is NOT your fault."_

 _"But, what if I could have tried harder, and then I passed out, and I woke up all alone, so, so alone." She looked at her lap, devastated._

 _Gale scooted over and pulled her into his arms. "Maybe we should stop for now," he told the officers._

 _"It's almost over, this part anyway, and it's better for her if we do this all at once."_

 _He nodded and kept holding on to Katniss._

 _"Miss Everdeen," Officer Marshall asked, "do you want to prosecute?"_

 _"Yes, she does," Gale said._

 _"Ma'am, do you want to prosecute?"_

 _"Yes," she said. "I want to prosecute."_

 _Officer Marshall nodded and said in a soft voice, "Then we need to have a rape kit done."_

 _Katniss nodded and Gale stiffened, trying to stay strong for her, she suspected._

 _"Are you her brother?"_

 _"As good as," Gale said, his jaw tight and his chin jutting out._

 _"Do I have to leave here?" Katniss said._

 _"No, ma'am, we'll have the doctor here to do a home visit in a few minutes." Officer Marshall turned to Gale. "We'll need the family doctor information and insurance information."_

 _He nodded as she continued, saying,"Her sister should come back out and sit with her while we work out all of the details. She will need to get her a full change of clothing, socks, shoes, underwear, and comfortable clothes." He nodded again, a determined calm on his face, ruling over the anger and sadness she saw written all over his face.  
_

 _"I won't tell anyone anything," he told Katniss, "and Katnip, I know you may not want to hear this, but it's the truth. This isn't your fault. You are precious and we love you. I love you. We are never going to think of you as worthless because you are so incredibly valuable. I'm not leaving her until it's over, but I want you to know that we love you.. Always."_

 _Within seconds, Prim, who had already gathered everything the officer wanted, both medical and clothing related, was sitting next to her sister. Katniss laid down on her lap and Gale laid a blanket over her so that she could sleep until the doctor came. But Katniss fought to stay awake, fought to know everything, fought to not sink into her feelings. Be strong for Prim, be strong for Gale, be strong for Prim, be strong for Gale, she found herself chanting over and over in her head. Prim said nothing, simply stroked Kat's hair and held her hand._

 _She had a concussion, the doctor said. She had bruises all over her legs and arms, and on her back from the rocks in the alley. The doctor took samples and photographs, and the whole time Kat simply looked at Prim's face, trying to feel normal, trying to remember this would end. The doctor finished after a few hours and Prim helped her into the shower. Once she was alone, she sobbed, all of her sadness and all of the weight on her shoulders coming out because there was no one here to see how awful and broken she felt._

 _By the end, she had cried herself out and the numbness came back. When she shut off the shower, Prim was there and finally, with Prim by her side, she sank into a few blissful hours of dreamless sleep._

Katniss felt rain on her face and looked up to see the clouds. There were none. She came back down when she heard Peeta saying gently. "Katniss? Katniss? Are you okay?" He wiped the tears from her face and she leaned into his hand for a second. She straightened back up and said, "Sorry, I just couldn't help but remember it all again." She stopped breathing for a second until she saw Gale and again everything was okay. She could breathe. If Gale hadn't been there...

She found herself walking to Gale and hugging him wordlessly. Gale never hesitated, simply hugged her.

"Thank you, Gale. Thank you, for everything." She choked up a little and he said, "Always, Katniss. Always." Katniss took a deep breath and shook Gale loose, saying, "Weren't we going shopping?"

Prim ran for a forgotten charger, stealing her keys and Gale and Madge talked while she walked back to Peeta. She looked down. "I'm sorry, Peeta."

He tilted her face up with his hand gently on her chin and said, "For what?"

"For keeping you in the dark, I should have told you."

"Katniss, it's okay, we haven't even been on a date yet. You can tell me your secrets whenever you want, but I'm happy to date you without knowing any secrets you choose to keep to yourself."

"Why are you still here?"

"Katniss, I would have to be the biggest fool alive to leave the most amazing, beautiful, talented, gorgeous, wonderful, kind, etc. woman on the face of the planet. I may be many things," he said smiling, "but I am no fool."

She waited for him to say, 'Just kidding, I'm out of here.'

Instead, she heard, "I'm not going anywhere, you precious person."

"You actually mean that," she said, awestruck.

"But why? Why are you still here? I don't understand. I am weak, nothing. I'm 'used goods'."

She flinched and he said, passion and anger in his voice, "Katniss, you aren't weak. You are the strongest woman, the strongest person on the face of the planet. You most definitely are not "nothing", you are someone I care about, you're Prim's sister and Madge's best friend, Gale's sister." He laughed, frustrated, she assumed.

He drew even closer, moving both of his hands to her face and leaning his forehead against hers. It felt like they were the only two people in existence, when he said, so softly, "Katniss, you are the most amazing woman on the face of the earth, and the bad things that have happened to you don't change that. They let me see all of it more clearly. See your kindness, your beauty, your strength, your incredible worth as a sister, a friend, a girlfriend. I am so afraid that one day you'll wake up and realize just how much more amazing you are than me and my chance will be blown to be with the most incredible woman I have ever met."

She laughed until she leaned away and saw how serious she was. She wondered how he could see all of those amazing things in her when she couldn't see them and yet, he couldn't see himself so clearly.

"Oh, Peeta. I am the luckiest girl in the world to date you. You are so kind and smart and caring and sweet." She smiled. "I heard we're supposed to go on some kind of date tonight."

"Yeah," he said, "I think we are." He smiled and her heart jumped into hyper-speed. Man, he made her nervous in the best kind of way.

"So, we're still doing that." She hesitated and looked up.

He chuckled, "I have to take my chance before my time runs out." He winked.

She smiled. "Well, if that is the case," she said, twirling her hair, using a girly girl voice, "I need to go shopping because I have nothing to wear."

She heard Madge say, "Are you imitating me?"

Katniss said, "No!" Then she whispered to Peeta, maybe a little bit.


	16. Shop 'Til You Drop

**Hey all! Hope you are all doing well and that you will continue to follow the story! This chapter is going to have a lot a fluff with one or two serious moments. I figured the hearts of everyone here could use a fluffy kind of day.**

Chapter Sixteen: Shop 'Til You Drop

Madge had given rules in return for Peeta's.

Rule 1: Boyfriends couldn't see their girlfriend try on things.

Rule 2: The boys had to carry everything, but it was her turn to buy for Katniss.

Peeta thought it was a little unfair that he couldn't see Katniss in anything she tried on, but he guessed that today wasn't the day to test the shopping rules. He was pretty sure that Madge could smite him if he tried to defy their plans.

He tried to picture Katniss in a dress and all that popped in his head was the time that he had thought of her being with Gale. He laughed to himself and Katniss turned to look at him. Her face looked incredulous. Oh. He must've laughed out loud.

"What are you laughing about, Peeta?" Gale asked from the backseat.

"Something stupid. Nothing to worry about he said."

"Oh really? Why don't you let us be the judge of that?" Madge said.

"Yeah, maybe it would be a good source of blackmail." Katniss had a smug look on her face, a mischievous look in her eyes and Peeta felt himself blush.

"So guys- are we headed to the mall or what? Which store are we going to first?"

"Oh we are so not letting this go," Gale and Katniss said nearly in unison. They high fived each other and then zeroed in on him. Man, this wasn't good.

"You wouldn't believe me even if I did tell you." He laughed. "It is pretty stupid- especially knowing what I do now."

"SPILLLLL!!!!!" The car erupted with everyone trying to convince him.

"Before I give up anything, you guys are going to have to give up some pretty embarassing stories as collateral."

The car went silent for a few minutes and Peeta laughed smugly. There is not a single possibility of them wanting to know what he was thinking that badly. He turned up the the music only for Prim to say turn the music down. Kat turned down the radio and he looked in the rearview mirror to see the three in the back seat nod at each other.

"Let's do this!" Madge said.

Peeta gulped. Oh crap.

Madge started out saying, "The first time that I tried to talk to Gale, I swallowed my gum down the wrong pipe and he had to perform the heimlich maneuver."

They all chuckled and Gale smiled wide.

"Why were you so nervous?" he asked Madge, milking this for all it was worth.

She stared Peeta in the eyes and said, "Because I knew that if Gale hated me that it would effectively ruin my friendship with Katniss."

Everyone turned to look at her, shocked.

Kat said, "Geez, Madge, I'm not important enough to choke on gum and die for."

"Actually," Gale said, "I kind of see her point."

"Okay, my turn," came Prim's voice from the middle.

One down and three to go. They pulled into the parking lot.

"Right before I went to the dance with Declan last spring, I pulled the Katniss test on him."

"Ohhhh, pleeease tell me what the Katniss test is!" Peeta nearly shouted, as the blush spread deeper across Katniss' face.

"Oh goodness," Katniss said, head in her hands.

"Isn't this supposed to be Prim's embarrassing story?" Peeta asked, curious.

"It is. You don't realize how bad the Katniss test can get."

Prim grimaced and said, "The Katniss test is... Springing something on the boy that he would never expect."

Peeta thought about what it could be. slapping the guy? Probably to violent. Gale nearly began to giggle, like a little boy who pulled a prank.

Katniss wasn't cruel either. What could it be?

"So... I planted one on him in front of everyone."

Peeta felt him himself swerve to adjust to his driving mishap.. "whatttt?????"

He looked at Katniss, who was intently looking out the window. Oh God. She must have done that once. That lucky guy. Peeta felt himself get a little jealous, as if a baby dragon version of himself wrapped around Katniss, saying, "MINEEEE."

"How did that go?"

"Well, um, I didn't kiss Declan."

"What???" Peeta's head was swimming.

"'Katniss kissed the one she liked, I kissed Declan's mortal enemy... to see if he even cared." She smiled. "He did."

Peeta was becoming more and more aware as time went on, how badly he would have been screwed if he ever hurt Katniss. Not that he ever would hurt her, but he was terrified nonetheless.

They pulled up to the mall and Katniss said, "Ah. Saved by the mall."

Peeta said, "I'm not in a rush," and winked at her.

They all walked into the mall, Madge dragging them into a Rue 21 as soon as they were in the door. Peeta laughed at the look of horror on Kat's face, thinking that he would probably collapse when he saw her in whatever they picked out. She was always gorgeous.

Of course, she probably wouldn't believe it if he told her that now.

Katniss looked up to see the mannequins in the window. The clothes, well, needed more fabric. She heard Peeta laugh. He probably thought that she would look ridiculous in any of these clothes. She knew she thought that.

Well, whatever made Madge happy.

"Alright boys," she said, "Go wait outside!"

They laughed. "Okay, but we expect a fashion show when we get back!" They laughed and walked out, talking to each other as Katniss started to look at them and panic.

"Ummm so I wouldn't look good in any of this."

"Don't insult our fashion sense!" Prim said.

"Just look. You might like something."

They saw several dresses and Kat was fidgety about the length of all of them.

"Madge. This won't cover anything. It is going to make me look ridiculous."

"If you think that, don't you trust Gale's opinion? Ask him what he thinks."

Each one of them found something and in a few minutes, Prim arrived outside.

"Okay, so Peeta comes in first, to see Madge. Then he comes to switch places with Gale, who will come back to get Peeta whenever it is my turn. Okay?"

Peeta stood up to attention and saluted.

"Yes, ma'am!"

Prim laughed and grabbed him by the sleeve dragging him inside.

Peeta was dying to know what Katniss had picked. He didn't see anything in this store that fit her sense of fashion.

As he walked back, Prim closed a curtain behind him and called Madge outside.

Madge came out in a red dress, a bold choice for the more timid girl he had met.

"Wow!!" Prim gushed. "That looks incredible!"

"Umm. I don't know how much my opinion matters here, but I think you look fantastic."

Madge smiled wide. "Do you think he would like it?" Her face became a soft mix of concern, excitement, and affection.

"Yeah, do you think I would like it?"

Madge jumped at Gale's voice rising up right on the other side of the curtain. Madge jumped and Prim laughed.

Peeta just found himself saying, "If you aren't floored by it, you're an idiot beyond all hope."

Madge smiled at him and Peeta smiled back, glad to know that she thought his opinion mattered. Trying to in over the best friend and sister was just as important of a task as winning her over, as these were the people that Kat cared the most about in the entire world.

"Well, I don't knoooowwwww," Kat drew out from the changing room, "Gale is pretty stupid." They all laughed as Gale said, "Hey!!"

Peeta found himself shoved outside and Gale was eager for information. So Peeta beat him to the punch. "I know man, but Prim will gut us if we break the rules."

Prim tried to look menacing punching one weak fist into the palm of her other hand.

"Fair point." Gale said it as if he too was not fooled by her childish outer coating. Prim was a force to be reckoned with and they both knew it. For wherever she happened to fall short, they need that Katniss and a monkey wrench would pick up soon after.

"Wish me luck," Gale said.

"As if you weren't already lucky." Peeta sighed. "Commander, close the curtain."

Prim nodded gravely saluting and receiving an answering salute from Peeta.

Gale stepped behind the curtain, feeling excited as if he were some kind of little kid invited to a secret girls only fort.

He wished he could have seen Madge, but being able to see Katniss made up for it. The moment she walked out, Gale was speechless; somehow, even in this store, Katniss found her way. She was wearing some kind of olive green dress with a scarf wrapped around her shoulders and her hair was down, although the back was loosely braided.

Katniss was blushing and she looked unsure.

Prim was gushing seconds later.

"Katniss, you look amazing!"

Madge appeared in her regular clothes and he could tell she loved it. Madge had tears in her eyes.

"It's just so beautiful, Katniss!"

Gale tried to speak, but words wouldn't come out. Kat walked to him, looking down, hesitant, and Gale just thought, 'God was Peeta right- I am so lucky.'

"What do you think?" Kat asked.

He signaled for her to twirl and just smiled seeing her laugh as she twirled.

He stood up and hugged her. She jumped a little in suprise, then hugged him back. "I think you look gorgeous," he whispered.

Then he backed away and winked at the three girls and said, "Too bad Peeta can't see his ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS GIRLFRIEND WHO IS SO BEAUTIFUL SHE DROVE MADGE TO TEARS."

They heard Peeta groan exasperatedly from the other side of the curtain. "That's not fair. It is killing me to not see it."

Katniss laughed. "Don't worry, you are not missing much."

"NEW RULE!" Madge yelled. "Everytime you say something stupid like that, Peeta gets to see it."

"Ooh! I like that rule!" said Peeta from the other side.

"So, Peeta, come tell your girlfriend how wrong she is," Prim said.

"That is so not fai-" Katniss started and Peeta was already back there.

Katniss looked at the look on Peeta's face and blushed even more, looking down at her feet. She felt him walking up to her, when he tilted her face up to his and kissed her on the cheek.

"I'm the luckiest guy in the world."

"Why?" Madge said, egging him on.

"Yeah, why Peeta?" Prim and Gale said in unison.

"Because Katniss is the most beautiful person I have ever met."

Katniss had never felt so embarrassed in her whole life, but in the best way possible. With Peeta, she never knew when to expect compliments or to see such an honest amount of awe on his face, like a kid on Christmas morning, whenever he looked at her like he just did.

If she ever lost him, she was pretty sure it would kill her. She saw the concern in his eyes, when that thought must've flashed across her face, but he and she both just smiled, even if she knew he would ask about it later, that he would make sure that she was okay.

Kat said, "Thank you." Not in a begrudging voice, but a softer version of her usual voice. That is how he made her feel, soft.

"Now, it is Prim's turn," she said.

She saw Peeta send Madge a look like, you better do it. Do what? Who knew.

"You know, it is not fair that he got to see Kat, but I didn't get to see Madge."

"Maybe you will see it some time in the future," Peeta said adamantly.

Madge laughed and said, "Maybe."

As Kat and Prim went to change, the rest of them sat together.

Prim whispered to Katniss as she heard them talking, "What's wrong?" she asked.

Kat leaned over and whispered, "I just don't want to lose him. That's all."

Prim leaned back, smiling. "You won't," she said confidently at the normal level.

Katniss smiled, happy to believe for the moment that her sister was right. She quickly changed and went back out to sit with everyone and wait for Prim. Peeta leaned over to her and said, "You are buying that dress, right?"

"Umm... Do you really like it that much?"

Peeta looked at her. "Didn't you?"

"I guess. I just thought it might look silly on me."

Peeta shook his head. "It didn't look ridiculous, it looked amazing."

Prim came out and Katniss smiled, amazed at how beautiful Prim had grown up to be.

Gale said, "Whoa kid. You look great."

"She looks great in everything," Katniss said, as thought it was obvious. Prim laughed.

"It doesn't seem very me."

Katniss laughed. "And you say you aren't picky."

"I'm not! I'm just very opinionated."


	17. Every Now and Then

Chapter 17- Every Now and Then

Every now and then, Prim realized just how much had happened in the last few years, how much had changed. Watching Kat with Peeta almost gave her a look into the Kat of those years before their dad had passed away.

They were walking in the mall, and Peeta freaked out at the pretzel store. It was hilarious.

They had been walking toward the food court, which happened to be next to the store next on the journey, when Peeta smelled the pretzels. He loved soft, warm pretzels. The salty sweetness could not go unloved. He turned to Kat and asked if she would like one.

"Kat, I'm going to grab a pretzel. Would you like one?" Immediately, Prim, Madge, and Gale turned to Katniss, expecting something like an explosion, he guessed. He had no clue why, but he didn't see anything wrong with asking.

"Umm." He dreaded the next words. What if she didn't like soft pretzels? What would there be to say to that?

"I've never had a soft pretzel before."

Flabbergasted. This was the best word to describe his feelings on the matter.

Prim watched as Kat told him she had never had one. Peeta's face was priceless. His mind looked as if it has been blown into millions of pieces. Suddenly, he walked to Prim. He seemed deeply saddened by this turn of events. In the gravest voice she had ever heard Peeta use, he asked, "Has this lovely person denied you the rights you deserve to soft pretzels?"

Struggling to keep a straight face, she said, "No, sir. My liberties are intact. I have enjoyed several hot pretzels."

Relief seemed to fill his heart. "Well then, Evergreen, please explain why said individual has never enjoyed such a privilege?"

She had been standing at attention and Peeta began to pace back and forth amongst the three: Madge, Gale, and herself.

She had to pause, trying not to laugh at the incredulous expression on her sister's face.

"Sir, I believe it is because she believes it frivolous and not worth the cost, sir. She has also been unwilling for others to purchase said pretzel."

Gale, Madge, and Prim broke when Peeta half yelled, "Frivolous? No baked good is frivolous. Pretzels and other baked goods are the splendor of life!"

Kat chuckled and rolled her eyes at Peeta.

"Pretzels are frivolous. What purpose do hot pretzels serve? Please. Explain."

"While cake is admittedly my passion," Peeta said, "all baked goods are meant to make you happy. They are a little piece of goodness in this cold, dark world that we are living in." Katniss found herself chuckling.

She nodded with mock sincerity.

Prim suddenly remembered the last memory that she had of Katniss and her father, both sitting at the dinner table, laughing and cracking jokes about the ways food made the world a better place, that they were lucky that Mom was a master chef, or they would have starved.

She felt a longing for her father, that came and went often. She imagined him being here and what he would have done to the guy that had broken Katniss' heart. She looked to Peeta and wondered what he was thinking.

"How about this?" She looked to Kat. "Katniss, you, Madge, and Gale go get started in the next store and Peeta and I will secure the pretzels." She smiled and Peeta nodded firmly.

Kat hesitated and the silence was broken by Peeta mumbling under his breath. "Never had a warm pretzel. It's a travesty."

She looked to him and said, "Fine, you can buy me a pretzel, this one time."

"And all the times after," Peeta said, nodding his head to Prim to gesture for them to walk away.

Katniss just yelled after them, "I didn't agree to that!" Prim heard Gale laughing in the background, as Madge said, "Do you think that matters?"

Prim saw Peeta smile, a lighthearted air to the way that he walked and joked with them.

"So, Peeta." Peeta turned to her, curiosity burning in his eyes. "I'm dying to know what is going through your head right now."

Kat, Madge, and Gale were out of sight and Peeta seemed more concerned now that Kat wasn't watching him.

"Well," Peeta chuckled, "it has been a very eventful morning so far."

"And?" Prim asked, as they waited in line.

"Well, I am just in shock, honestly. Your sister is hands down the strongest woman in the world. I can't imagine how much you and she and your family have been through, but through all of it she has never given up." He paused. "I am not sure that I could be that strong, wise, or patient with the way that the world seemed to be turning on me."

Prim nodded. "She used to be much more carefree. Honestly, when she is with you, I feel like I am beginning to see the person that I knew and loved before all of this happened to her, to us." Prim looked down. "I don't know how much she has told you, but our father died five years ago in an accident." She sighed. "It was tough after that. We didn't have as much money or leeway as we did before. She thinks that I don't know that we struggle, but I do."

Peeta nodded. "Were you really close with your dad?"

"Yeah, I was seven, but Kat was twelve." She looked down, speaking to her feet. "She loved him so much and I have no doubt that I would have been just as close with him in time, like she was. We didn't get more time." She breathed in. "The biggest blow for Kat, I think, was the way that our mom shut down after dad died. She really struggled and while I know that she wanted to be there for us, the grief was too much and we didn't have the money for her to reach out to other people. Again, don't tell Kat any of this, she doesn't think that I have noticed it, but I have.

Kat is the one who kept food on the table, Mom at her job, and all of us from completely falling apart. She didn't really ever have time to grieve for our dad though. She has been too focused on everyone else since then, so whether she knows it or not, it is like she is barely keeping her head above water. Then, with Richard," she shivered involuntarily. "He was the first person to seem to bring her out of herself a little bit. She was a teenager, she had a crush, and he took advantage of that. He was cruel, but I think after losing dad, she was afraid to lose one of the only things that made her feel something other than sadness and stress."

"That night, when she came home," Prim paused. She didn't know how she could describe what she had felt. "I have never been so angry in my life. Kat is my hero and to see her so broken and hurt, I wanted to step up and give her everything she needed. Gale knows most of it, and I gather that she told you part of the story, but there are things that I don't think she remembers."

"She was so tired, and laying there, on that couch, you could see the bruises on her neck. When the doctor had finished examining her, and I got her to the shower, he told me how much damage that that monster had done to her."

She looked at Peeta, saw an echo of her emotions: the anger, the sorrow, the pain, the awe. He seemed speechless. "So, I say that to say this- my sister is going to have a hard time sometimes. She might not want to sit at certain tables and there are places that she doesn't want to go. But, I know you know that she is worth the effort."

Peeta watched Prim tell him these things in line for pretzels. He watched her mind turning, her hands moving, and saw so many reflections of Katniss in Prim. He could see how close they were, could tell that she was telling him nothing but the truth.

"I would be foolish," he found himself saying, "if I didn't realize the value of what you have told me, or if I could not see the enormous number of ways that your sister is obviously the most awesome person on the planet." He smiled. "Thank you for telling me, for checking in on me, but I am so beyond needing reassurance or even encouragement on dating your sister." He smiled. "I don't want to throw away my shot at impressing her, because I have a feeling that that doesn't come around often."

"So, what do you want to get your sister for her birthday?"

"So many things! I think pretzels are a great start."

"Why of course, pretzels are always a great beginning to any adventure."

Kat walked in the store, Gale and Madge on either side of her. She felt herself pulling away, knowing that Peeta and Prim were out of the way for the moment, knowing that Madge and Gale would let her have this moment, let her take in everything going on without asking her to spill the beans.

They were talking about the day and wondering what Peeta's secret was. Suddenly, something occurred to Kat. She paused. 

They didn't realize for a few steps, but they turned to see the glare on her face.

"What is up with that face, Catnip?"

"You knew didn't you?" She began smiling and shaking her head.

"Knew what?" Madge asked.

"How long did you know that Peeta liked me?"

Madge and Gale both paused.

"Hey- I tried telling you from the beginning, but nobody listened to me."

"That is because you decked him in the face after being convinced for weeks that I liked you." Kat rolled her eyes. Like she was going to let him off the hook for this one.

"What about you, Madge?"

"Well…" She smiled. "Peeta told me that he liked you right after he was decked in the face, on the way to the nurses' office. But I didn't tell you because you would not have believed me anyways. Besides he wanted to be your friend first."

She laughed and started walking again. "I see how it is. My own best friends keeping secrets from me." They chuckled and she started being even more dramatic. "How will I ever trust either of you ever again? You are all in cahoots."

"Well, you can trust me," Prim said from behind her. "I only knew by intuitive genius."

"Yeah, and you can trust me," Peeta said, "because my cake is the splendor of life."

Kat laughed. "You are all utterly ridiculous."

Peeta nodded seriously, "Even moo-ore than you know."

Everyone groaned.

"Peeta- never again," Madge said. Kat wondered if she would ever actually know what was happening in Peeta's mind, or if he would brave the front of not being affected by the news tonight on their date, which she thought was probably more likely.

Everything around her told her that she was changed forever, different for the rest of her life over an even that she had no control over. She had no idea how to be the person she used to be in light of all that had happened to her in the last few years.

The day flew by in her mind, Peeta never seeming any more serious or acting any differently than he had any other day that he had known her.

In one of the last stores that they had come across, the boys carrying the mountain of new wardrobe options that every one had forced her to buy, she walked in and saw the most beautiful dress she had ever seen. It was lace and satin, tight and flowing, amazing and comfortable. She smiled as she tried on the dress, the blue looking amazing on her skin. It seemed as if the dress was meant for her, until she looked at the price tag.

She couldn't go out in this. She couldn't let anyone buy her this expensive dress, especially not after they had spent so much on her already.

She listened to Peeta tell Madge that she looked beautiful and ask her which dress, out of the many that she had tried on, that she liked the best. Madge said that she never really knew what she liked on moment to the next, but that her clothes never really seemed to matter to the people that she hung out with, especially all of these people. I like all of them, but I probably like the little black dress from the last store, simply because it fits me the best.

Madge called out to Katniss. "Okay, Kat, are you ready?"

"No- I am not coming out this time. The dress doesn't look good, so I'm just going to change."

"You won't even let us see it first?"

"I don't need it, so I am just going to put it back."

"Let me in."

Kat sighed and let Madge into her dressing room. Madge gasped, amazed. "Katniss, that dress is stunning. You look gorgeous. It totally fits. So, what is the problem."

Kat sat down. "It's too expensive, I cannot let you buy this dress. We've already spent so much money on me. I don't deserve it. It's too much."

Madge sat down next to her. "No, it's barely enough. Kat, you deserve the world and everything in it." She chuckled softly. "Besides, you don't get to decide whether or not you deserve this dress, I do. I'm buying it, so I choose. I choose yes."

Kat looked down at the dress, then into the mirror, into her own eyes. "Do you think that he would like it?"

"Let's ask. Peeta- do you like this dress?"

"Which dress?" she heard Peeta respond.

"The one Katniss is wearing."

"Yeah, if she is wearing it, it must be fantastic."

"You haven't even seen it!" Kat yelled. This boy was ridiculous.

"I don't have to see it to know you make the dress beautiful."

Gale whistled. "Bro- that was smooth."


	18. The Dreamers and Me

Chapter Eighteen: The Dreamers and Me

Kat could remember being a little girl, waking up on Saturday mornings to watch cartoons with her dad, just the two of them. He insisted on showing her the "best that fiction had to offer". Of course, that led to the Muppets. She could remember hours of watching corny Fozzy jokes, laughing at the Swedish chef, or singing along with Kermit.

She remembered her dad, crystallized in moments. She would give anything to have him here with her. He would know what to do and how to fix everything. But he wasn't here and she knew that she had to figure this out on her own. They were walking through the mall and she knew that Gale and Peeta would've liked her dad. Grief was a strange thing, she thought. It hit at the worst times and best times, like a visitor that stayed at your home, without advance notice, every single time that they passed through town. Truly, Kat felt like she had never known a day without grief in the past few years. It had worn her down to a lesser version of herself. She was struggling, but now, struggling felt casual. Struggling was her new normal.

Peeta walked up beside her, a smile on his face, and his presence alone seemed to remind Kat that everything was going to be okay. The day had been lovely, but they had worn her out. She had laughed so hard today, on one of the worst days of her life, to the point that her ribs hurt.

She looked over at Peeta and saw him already looking at her. Their eyes met and Kat felt him take in everything that he saw in her face. Grief, fear, anxiety, the full gambit- and he never turned away. Suddenly, she felt his hand in hers and she could breathe again. He smiled and looked over to the food court and back to her. She nodded and Peeta said, "Lunch is on me, everyone, so please tell me that we can go get food now. I am starving." They all agreed that they should acquire a feast of food from every place in the court. They got a pepperoni pizza, fries, cokes, fried chicken, and few other goodies. After spreading the food across the table, everyone sat, and it was as if they had always done this. She chuckled to herself and she saw Peeta smile.

"Alright- do we have to shop anymore? I am tired of being told that I look good in things," she said, primarily trying to get them to stop spending money on her.

Madge nodded, saying, "I guess that I have made up for the last three and a half birthdays."

Prim shrugged and said, "So, what do you want to do next Katniss?"

"Well, after being kidnapped, clothed several times over, and fed, none of which I was able to pay for, it doesn't seem that I have gotten to pick thus far. So, I pick that you guys get to pick."

Everyone else laughed and she smiled.

"You could get a facial. I'm sure you would love that Katniss," Gale said, with laughter in his eyes.

"You could get a massage," Peeta suggested. "It would relieve some of the stress at the very least."

"All good ideas, boys, but I have an even better idea." Madge smiled, and Katniss already knew what was about to happen.

As they walked into the nail salon, Katniss cringed at the thought of having people put fake nails on her. Madge assured her that the pedicure and manicure would be a great girls only activity, which happened to be next to a GameStop, the "all-boys" activity. She knew that it would make Madge happy, so she had consented. She had an idea that Gale would've suggested other options, but he didn't have the nerve to defy Madge's orders. Peeta probably had some kind of saint like reason for wanting her to go, like girl time, or that she deserved to be pampered, or some crap.

She knew that it was useless to fight, and she was happy, at the very least, that her hands would help her look good for her first date. Even if Peeta assured her that he didn't care, she was going to go all out. She wanted to be sure that she wasn't over or underdressed, that she had the perfect shoes, and that her hair looked okay. She knew that, no matter what, she would be terrified of his opinion, until he actually saw everything put together anyway.

They were all taken back to the salon chairs, and Katniss couldn't deny, the soaking of her feet and her hands was amazing. It felt better than just about anything she'd ever experienced. The whole time, the girls were asking her what dress she wanted to wear that night, so that she could get a good color for her nails. She had no clue. She asked them to pick, because she was too nervous. Prim argued that the olive-green dress fit Katniss very well, but soon, they had decided on this cute black and blue dress that they had bought a few stores back. It was pretty, they said, but not overly dressy. Then they decided that she should wear flats so that she would be comfortable. They finally, after hours of deliberation, that she should get a medium blue polish to match the dress on her hands and feet. Katniss was grateful that they knew her well enough to keep from making it impossibly difficult for her to convey to the nail specialist.

Katniss felt softer and more ladylike after the nail salon than ever before. She blushed when Madge told Peeta that he couldn't hold her hand for the next hour, just in case. Katniss knew that her nails would be fine, as they were already dry; however, she was not about to demand in front of everyone that she could hold his hand wherever. She would die before that ever happened.

Peeta laughed as Gale walked up to Katniss. 

"So, Catnip, do you feel all girly and fragile now?"

"Girly, yes. Fragile, no. I could easily kick your butt."

"How?"

"I could just tell Madge that you messed up my nails."

Madge appeared out of nowhere and said, "He what?"

"See?" Katniss said, as Madge nearly killed her boyfriend with her lethal glare.

"That isn't funny, Katniss," Gale said, taking a step back. "She hits really hard."

Everyone laughed and Prim said, "So, I bet Peeta was hoping that we would forget about earlier. But- I haven't. It is time for Gale and Katniss to spill so that we can hear Peeta's super embarrassing story."

"Oh yeah!" Gale said, coming up behind Peeta. "I can't wait to hear this story. I will go first."

Everyone made their way to the car, laughing and talking about random stuff. The boys carried all of the bags and Madge and Kat groaned at all of Prim's bad jokes.

"What is the slipperiest country in the world?" Prim asked.

"I don't know," Madge said.

"Go ahead- tell me the answer," Kat said.

"Greece!" Prim yelled and they all laughed, mostly at the level of enthusiasm that Prim had for the joke. They got to the car and Kat checked her phone.

An unknown phone number had texted her several times over the last few hours.

You can run, but you can't hide.

You can fly, but you can't fly away.

Kat texted the person back.

I am not in the business of letting other people decide whether or not I can or cannot do anything.

There was a white rose and a note on Peeta's car and suddenly, the real world had come back and Kat was more ready to face it this time. He had no power over her and he wouldn't ruin this day with her sister and her friends. She wouldn't let him.

She called the officer that had given her his card earlier and told him to come to the Food Court Entrance of the mall, because the creep had followed her again and was texting her and leaving her notes.

"What does she mean that he is texting her?" Gale asked.

Prim nearly snatched Kat's phone out of her hands, but then she realized that that would not help her consult with the police.

Katniss hung up the phone and said, "Officer Valentino said not to touch anything and that he and his partner would be here in ten minutes.

Katniss wondered if the officer realized how awkward it was to wait ten minutes outside of your car, when there were five people in the group.

"What do you mean that he has been texting you? Why didn't you tell us?" Prim said, as soon as she had finished her sentence.

"Prim, it is an unknown number and I didn't realize it was him until I saw the note and everything on Peeta's windshield, so instead of taking any more time, I just decided to call Valentino directly."

"Oh," Prim said, holding out her hand for the phone. "I want to see."

Katniss gave Prim the phone and everyone swarmed around, seeing all of the texts and the response that she had given.

"This guy is getting on my last nerve," Gale said, looking at Peeta and then back at Katniss.

"I never realized how much of a coward you have to be to leave notes, send texts, and all of that. If he had any guts, then he would come out and see me face to face."

Her phone buzzed and Madge read the text out loud.

I would love to see you one on one, Katniss. That is the way that this is supposed to be.

A chill went through the group and Katniss yelled, "Good luck with that, you lowlife!"

Another text came. Madge read it to herself and laughed.

She passed it to Gale and Gale read it out loud.

If I am a lowlife, so are you.

The whole group laughed, and Kat saw the police officer come around the corner.

The officer stepped out and walked straight up to Katniss. She informed the officer in a low voice that he could hear them, that he must be nearby.

The Officer nodded and walked up to the car.  
Wearing gloves, he took photos of the note and the rose on the car and inspected underneath the car to see if he had done any damage.

The officer opened the note and showed it to Katniss. Prim came over and looked, her face a little pale.

The note said,

"Darling, we have been apart too long. If you think you are hidden from me, you are not. This blond haired, lanky scoundrel has no place with you. If he knew what I did, he wouldn't want you. Without me, you have nothing. Does he know about our special night? Does the other rat with you know that he is trying my patience? I told him not to come near you, but these ingrates don't listen. Maybe, it is time, while I am nearby, to make sure they see you for you really are, what you are really worth,

Your Lover,

Richard

The officer took photos of the letter and said, "This guy is a nutjob. Good thing you are all staying at the Wilmington tonight, away from prying eyes. I will have a partner detailing the area there." She handed him the phone and as she did, the phone buzzed.

I know that you called the police. I know they are there. I know that you are not at the Wilmington tonight. Nice try though.

The officer chuckled, took a picture of his business card, and texted back,

Thanks for telling me what you know. That's very cooperative of you. If you want to chat, call me at this number.

He added the picture and pressed send.

They all laughed, and the officer said, "In my opinion, your plan sounds fine. I hope that you all have a great evening." He smiled, then said, "Oh, I think you dropped a bag," he said to Peeta, smiling. "You don't want to lose the stuff women shop for- that's dangerous." He nodded, smiled again, and said, "Call me if you need anything."

Peeta clicked the car remote and nothing happened. So, they put everything in the truck, all got into the car, and silence fell. "Do you really think that he knows everything that is going on?"

Madge had asked the question, but Peeta was pretty sure that they were all thinking it. Prim and Katniss were still silent and Madge asked, "Do you want us to know what was in the note on the windshield, Katniss?"

Kat was quiet for a few moments before she said, "Basic stalker stuff. You're worthless without me blah blah blah. We shared a special night blah blah blah. Those boys don't know who they are messing with blah blah blah." She fell silent again.

Gale and Peeta both said, "That guy is the worst."

Prim said, "Like a German sausage." The ice broke and everyone groaned and laughed at Prim's terrible joke.

"Well, it is my turn," Gale said.

Everyone quieted, and Gale began. 

"So, before I met Katniss or Madge, when I was in the fourth grade, I asked this sixth-grade girl out in front of everyone."

"How is that embarrassing?" Peeta said.

"Well, the way I did it ruined me for the next three years. From then on, at school, everyone referred to me as the boombox boy."

"You didn't," Peeta said.

"I did. I played her a song on a boombox and lifted it above my head. It was a long song and at the end of it, she just said no and walked away."

The car erupted in laughter, Gale included, though he cringed at the memory. "Hands down, one of the most embarrassing moments in my life."

"To be honest man, I don't know if my story lives up to that one. That one was a little extra. Don't worry- if it isn't enough, I have plenty of backups," Peeta said.

They all looked at Katniss and Katniss groaned. "Do I have to?"

Peeta said, "No," while the other three shouted, "YES!"

"Okay, well, when I was in Kindergarten, I had a crush on a boy in my class."

Everyone was entranced, and Peeta was sure that she had never even told this story to Prim before.

"Well, I worked it out in my head that he obviously liked me, because I was awesome."

Everyone nodded and she continued. "Well, it turns out that, well, I had to not like him because he was apparently our second cousin or something. I had never met him before, because their family had moved back into the area mere weeks before the start of school. Dad freaked when I told him." She laughed and everyone else just shouted, "What?"

"How have I never heard this before? Which second cousin?"

"Dylan."

"DYLAN?" Suddenly, Prim and Kat were both cringing and giggling, while everyone just cringed, not able to laugh at that. It was one of those awkward moments that you always cringe at, no matter how many times you hear the story.

Finally, the moment had arrived. It was Peeta's turn.


	19. Time to Confess

**Guys, I cannot believe that we are nineteen chapters into this fanfic. It was my first story and I am having so much fun continuing to write the story. Sorry for the pause, I wanted to make sure that I took the perfect next step. Here we go!**

Chapter 19- Time to Confess

Peeta blushed a bright red and he felt his heart galloping down the freeway, even though he had not even begun to drive yet.

Well, he thought. Here goes nothing.

"When I first came to school with you guys, about a year ago, I saw Madge, Gale, and Katniss together, and well, I totally thought that Gale and Katniss were together."

The car was silent for like five seconds and then erupted with questions.

"When did you realize that we weren't together?" Gale asked, curiosity flaring in his eyes.

"WHAAATTTT?" Madge said, louder than he would have thought.

"For real? Do you have eyes?" Prim said, scathingly, rolling her eyes. Prim was know obviously convinced that Peeta was an idiot.

Katniss just laughed to herself a little bit, hearing all of the responses, waiting.

"Well, the first time I came I noticed Katniss, but then everywhere she was, Gale was there also. I mean, we are in high school, so I think it was slightly reasonable, even though now I clearly see that you guys are totally siblings." He sighed. "Delly had this exact reaction when she found out that I liked Katniss, saying that I was an idiot for not talking to her about it earlier."

"When was that, though?" Gale asked.

"Well, I didn't know that I liked Katniss, you know beyond thinking that she was gorgeous, until like a month ago, when they first started making announcements for the school dance. Delly caught me off guard and then she pounced. Within minutes, I crumbled. Women are seriously way too good at getting the truth out of me."

Everyone in the car laughed.

"But that was before you had even talked to me," Katniss said.

"Yeah. After that, it took bumping into you for me to actually make the words come out of my mouth." He chuckled a little. "Though, I was not completely sure that you weren't interested in him until I heard it later that day."

Gale yelled, "I KNEW IT!"

"You still should not have punched him, you idiot," Madge said.

Katniss looked at Gale, amusement in her eyes. "You are such a fool, Gale." Without warning, Peeta and the rest of the car watched as tears began to fall down Kat's face. The car was silent again. Peeta leaned down, kissed her head, and said, "Time to get going, huh?" He put the car in reverse, backed out, placed it in drive, and then went to reach out to hold her hand, just as Katniss laid against shoulder. He wrapped his arm around her. He knew that she had been through such much, and now, he was just happy that he could help her, even in the slightest.

They drove and he smiled when Katniss reached forward, turning up the volume. Everyone talked quietly in the backseat, letting Katniss lean on Peeta and listen to the music wafting through the car on the radio.

Peeta was humming, Prim was stroking her hair, and as they drove, Katniss must have fallen asleep. She felt a hand shaking her awake, and Peeta's voice saying, "Wake up sleeping beauty, we are at the hotel."

She went to move toward the car door handle, but she realized Gale had already opened the door. "This way, my lady," Gale said, in the worst possible cockney accent.

"Yeah, okay, Burt." She laughed and Gale smiled. The boys carried in all of the bags, luggage, etc. into the Wilmington, and Madge walked up to the counter.

"Hello, ma'am," the nice lady at the counter smiled brightly as she spoke. "What can I do for you today?"

Madge smiled back, happy the lady enjoyed her job. "I am here to check in for the Undersee reservations."

The lady looked at Madge, put the information into the computer and said, "Can you wait a moment? Our manager will be right with you." The lady began gathering a few items from behind the counter as the Manager walked up to the attendant.

"Yes, sir. This young lady is here for the Undersee reservations."

There was a knowing look in the manager's eyes. "Ah. Right this way, Ms. Undersee and additional guests."

They followed the manager out of the lobby and into an adjacent hallway. As they got into the elevator, the manager was saying, "Ms. Undersee, I take it that you are actually going to one of our partner hotels, the Royal Chamber Suites Hotel across town."

The elevator doors shut and Madge said, "Are our reservations not for this hotel?"

He looked to all of them and briefly stopped the elevator. "Sorry for the dramatics, Ms. Undersee, but we have been alerted to a few safety concerns about your stay at this hotel. As such all of the details in our computer indicate that you requested a transfer to yet another hotel than the one I mentioned. You are staying at our hotel, but to ensure your safety, there is no paper or electronic trail for the perpetrator to follow that tells of your stay here. Only a team of select staff know of there being a guest or guests in your rooms and they will adress you as Ms. Hightower. Only I know that you and your guests are staying in the Penthouse suite this weekend." He smiled, reassuringly, and said, "I have taken every precaution to aid your stay here. I am sorry, but we could only have this conversation here, in the employee elevator, where there is no audio or visual camera recording. Also, until fifteen minutes from now, the cameras to the penthouse suite will show footage from the previous evening. If anything about the room needs to be changed, please let us know, and I will send someone to help you, Ms. Hightower."

The group followed the manager to the suite, noting the multiple bedrooms and spacious living accomodations. Katniss had never seen a hotel room so nice and she was fighting the urge to tackle and bed until the manager left.

He showed Madge all of the essentials and the boys took all of the girls things to the biggest bedroom.

"Anything else, Ms. Hightower?"

"Later this eveing, two of my guests will be leaving to go out for some time. I will call you thirty minutes before they depart. can you call a car for them at that time and ensure that they are not seen or followed?"

"Yes, ma'am, my security team is prepared for such a task as soon as you have need of them."

"Thank you, sir. That is all."

The manager left and everyone was staring at Madge, their mouths slightly open.

"What?" Madge asked, blushing.

"You are such a bossy woman," Gale said, slightly shocked.

"I know," Prim said, equally fascinated. "Are you part of the mafia or something?"

"Yep, you caught me," Madge said sarcastically.

"Madge," Kat said, reaching out her finger to poke Madge's face. "You can be that bossy? The world is a strange place."

"For a second there," Peeta said, smirking, "I did not know what to trust anymore. Beyond gravity keeping me on the ground, what else could I be sure of, after seeing that?" Everyone laughed and Madge blushed an even deeper shade of red.

Madge said, "If you don't get in that room and let me do your makeup, you are going to see just how bossy I can be."

"Sorry, babe, your best friend is a force of nature," Peeta said, making Katniss blush, smiling shyly.

"I guess I may never see you again, Peeta. They've been waiting for this for so long that I might never be done in there." Katniss uncharacteristically tossed her hand against her forehead as if she was going to faint and said, "Alas, whatever can be done?" Everyone was laughing, but they dispersed as Peeta walked up to her and asked, "Are you sure about that?" He smiled mischievously, leaning close and whispering in her ear, "Because I am pretty sure that if they do not send you out for our date, I will have to storm the castle." He kissed her on the cheek and Katniss heard Madge and Prim giggle.

It was all Katniss could do to walk away from Peeta after that. He got to her and for the next hour, she was sure, she was going to be pretty useless, stuck in a chair, unable to keep herself from think about him stealing her away for himself.

Madge dragged her into the room and Prim closed the door behind them. They had her strip, shave, and shower so they could make her prim and proper. She wasn't looking in a mirror, so she honestly could not tell if she would even recognize herself at the end. She felt herself being dragged to the chair, her makeup being blended, as if into her bones. She knew that they would turn her into some kind of masterpiece, but as time went on, Katniss began to wonder if he would regret tonight. She laughed to herself, thinking of the day so far, of all the times that he had looked at her like.. like he was in awe. Every time he saw her in anything she tried on today, she had felt beyond beautiful. He treated her as if she was the most gorgeous woman in the world. But... she would not exactly say that she hated such attention from him.

As they finished, she listened to Madge and Prim talk about how beautiful she looked. They questioned what she thought they were going to eat and she told them that he was taking her to a Chinese restaurant. Prim chuckled and said, "You must really have wanted Chinese, since I have heard about that nearly four or five times today alone."

"He said that he didn't mind..." Kat said, blushing.

"That boy would probably eat a dead raccoon if you asked him too," Madge said, a smirk stretched all of the way across her face. "You could have worn a potato sack tonight and he would show you off, as if you had just come off the runway in Milan."

"He did tell me that he would still date me, even if I wore sweats on a date."

Madge and Prim groaned, and Kat was sure that they were imagining her getting ready for a date, being unable to decide on an outfit, and then putting on sweatpants. She laughed at the sound, marveling at the notion that out of all the things she thought possible, this outcome is not what she had seen coming. She would never have imagined that Peeta would react the way that he did, that the group would have spent the day buying her clothes and food, or that, on top of all of that, she found find herself primed to go on her first date with Peeta.

She wondered what he would say, how it would go, and whether or not he would want to do all of it again. If nothing else, it was time for her to confess that she was a hopeless girl who found a perfect guy. She couldn't wait to have time alone with him, time to just be a girl who likes a guy.


	20. Ah Wouldn't It Be Loverly?

**Oh my dear sweet goodness golly gee whiz Moses! 20 Chapters! I am beyond happy that everyone is even still reading at this point. It is a dream come true to know that just as much as I enjoy writing, you all enjoy reading this story. I don't know when it will end, as I have not mapped that far ahead, but I know there are at least five or so chapters left. Please comment and let me know your thoughts/ concerns/ favorite parts of the story! (It's long, but I hope you enjoy it!)**

Chapter 20- Ah, Wouldn't It Be Loverly?

Peeta found himself looking in the mirror, in awe at the way this day had gone. It was a Tuesday, he should have taken a math quiz or something, yet here they were, waiting until this was settled. He wanted tonight to go well, because he couldn't imagine letting such a stupid boy come between him and this amazing girl. He realized that there was a lot that he did not know, but what he was honestly shocked about was just how okay he really was with her having things that she kept to herself. He had meant everything that he had told Katniss today. So many times today, he had had to remind himself that as strong as she was, she was not invulnerable and especially given the current circumstances, he would need to be very considerate of the things that Katniss wanted to happen this evening.

He was getting ready, taking a shower, and getting dressed, beyond excited about the evening. Though he knew that they might need to remain on guard, he wanted her to feel as if that dufus had never existed. Tonight, it would be only him and her.

Gale had told him that Madge wanted Peeta to be ready by five thirty, which gave him a little over an hour, but yet, here he was in the last fifteen minutes, anxious to steal Katniss away, to spend some time alone with her. He knew that in the light of today, she might be a little more reserved than she would have been before. Wondering what dress she would decide to wear, he went to grab a bottle of water from the fridge.

Katniss had been told that Peeta was ready and waiting on her. She has not even looked in the mirror, because she was too nervous. They had doubtlessly changed her into some kind of masterpiece.

Prim looked at Katniss and smiled. "Sis, relax. You look amazing. He is over the moon about you. Just go have fun."

Madge nodded, saying, "Don't psych yourself out, Katniss; you deserve this."

Katniss took a few deep breaths, trying to calm her rapid heartbeat, when she opened the door and saw Peeta across the room, his back turned to her. He was throwing away a water bottle. He looked amazing, with a dark blue polo over a pair of black jeans. Her heart started racing again when he turned around. She blushed bright red, when Peeta began to walk toward her, with that same look of awe on his face. She wished now that she had looked in the mirror.

No one else had come out of the separate rooms to show them off, so she guessed that they had left her and Peeta to have this moment alone. Thank goodness. The last thing she needed was to have Gale make her blush even more deeply by making fun of her. She could not remember the last time that she had dressed up so fancily.

Peeta finished the water bottle and threw it away. He wondered if he had picked the right clothes, although he was pretty sure that Gale would have at least warned him to change.

He turned, head down, and heard a door shut. Hearing the noise, he looked up and thought that he might have died. He was shocked, excited, and luckiest guy in the world within a matter of seconds. Before him, standing in a dark blue dress, with swirling black designs, was Katniss, looking as beautiful as he had ever seen her. She was wearing makeup and her hair had been done so intricately. He immediately felt underdressed, wondering if he should have worn the suit that he had brought. Well, it was too late now.

Without noticing it, he had been walking forward, and Katniss had the most radiant and stunning blush on her cheeks. Wow.

"Katniss, you look.." He honestly did not have good enough words to describe how good she looked. If he didn't know better, he would have tried to convince her that she should just let him sit and look at her all evening.

"I look terrible, don't I?" Katniss hung her head a little, saying, "I knew I should have checked befor-"

He couldn't help but interrupt her. "NO! Katniss, you look stunning." He walked closer, so that he was only half a foot away from her, and pecked her on the cheek.

He straightened up, held out his arm to her, and said, "Shall we, my lady?" In the dumb British accent that Gale had used earlier. Katniss giggled, took his arm, and they began to walk out, as they heard Prim yell, "And you better have her back here by 10:30, Peeta!"

Peeta opened the door and then closed it once Katniss was on the other side. They walked toward the elevator and he said, "I am glad that we got to do this."

"So, Mr. Mellark," Katniss drawled, "We are finally alone." Peeta felt the heat rise in his cheeks, and wondered if she could read his mind. At that exact moment, he had been imagining what it would have felt like to kiss her again.

"Are you nervous?" he asked, unsure of her answer. He wanted her to know that she was safe with him. That even though he was beyond attracted to her, that he would rather die than force her to do anything.

Finnick looked across the room at his fiancee, Annie, and felt a happiness and peace that he wished everyone could have. On days like today, he knew that he was truly blessed to have fallen in love, to have her love him back, to have great friends, and to have the power to help those who not only deserve a second chance, but who simply have gone through as much as Katniss had. Though he was admittedly closer to Gale than he had been to Katniss, he knew that she had changed when her father had died, that her world had shattered again when the maniac had come into her life, had done something so unspeakable. If any man had done that to Annie, Finnick would not have been so gracious as Gale had been. He would have cared for Annie, but he would not have rested until he had killed the man that dared to lay a finger on the woman that he loved.

He knew that Gale and Katniss were closer to siblings than lovers, but nevertheless, he knew that while Gale would have hurt that maniac, he would never have lost control, he never would have killed such a terrible waste of human life. Finnick knew that and admired Gale for it. He knew that Katniss was strong, but he was also ecstatic to help them in such a simple task as throwing a party or arranging simple reservations and movie tickets. Finnick had moved to this area a few years ago, for the sake of Annie's health. That's when he met Gale. And though he was here for Annie, he also had pretty substantial resources, as his father happened to be the magnate of a large and extraordinarily profitable shipping corporation.

It was next to nothing to spend money on some movie tickets and a decent meal at a decent restaurant. He hoped that this guy would treat Katniss right, because if he didn't, Gale would not let another guy go after all the havoc that the first one is wreaking.

He looked at Annie, a true gratefulness surging through him. "Annie, babe, we've been decorating for a few hours now. Do you want to rest for a little while? We don't need to put up any of the final stuff, like the banners and tables for food until Friday."

She looked up, smiled wearily, and nodded. Yawning, she said, "Yeah. I am a little tired after the day we have had today. Though," she said, sweet and sincere, "I love that Gale thought to ask us for help. It's been too long since we have thrown a party."

Finnick smiled. "My perfect hostess," he whispered, kissing her on the cheek, then on the neck. "I am so glad to have you all to myself. I am beyond happy that you are going to be my wife."

"My dear, I think I got the better end of the deal this time," Annie said, her eyes glistening. She sat down, looking as if she were nearly about to collapse from exhaustion.

"Annie!" Finnick cried, running over and kneeling in front of her, "Why didn't you say something earlier? You know you aren't supposed to push yourself too much."

"I'm sorry, sweetheart." Annie sighed, leaned back, and was asleep within seconds. Finnick gathered her up in his arms, imagining what would have happened to him if she had not recovered.

It was nearly two months ago now that she had gotten out of the hospital after a nearly fatal car accident. She had broken several ribs, a femur, a collarbone, and had crushed some of the bones in her left foot. It had taken nearly half a year before she was able to leave the hospital and even think about starting physical therapy. He had rushed to the hospital that night, having gotten the call mere minutes before eating dinner. He had rushed out, leaving food out on the table and a casserole in the oven. He hadn't even thought about what all he had left behind in his apartment until nearly twelve hours later, when the doctors had told him that it would be a while before he could see her, and that he needed to eat something. So he did.

Looking back now, he can't believe that they found their way past it all, past such tragedy to their life together.

Peeta and Katniss walked up the hallway, to the car waiting outside. Katniss reached for the door handle, then dropped her hand and waited. He beamed, grabbing her hand for a moment, softly gripping it for a second, and then opened the car door. She got in and Peeta walked around to the other side of the car. When he got in, he noticed that Katniss was looking down at her hands. Peeta gave the driver directions and then turned to Katniss.

"If this date costs a thousand dollars, I am sorry, but it is not like I made the reservations." He smiled and she looked up. There were tears brimming in her eyes and suddenly, he was running through everything that he had said, wondering where he had gone wrong.

"Katniss.. did I say something?" He looked at her closely, he brain racing to fix the issue.

"No, Peeta." He slid a little toward the middle of the seat, so she did the same. He held out his hand, and she took it, resting her head on his shoulder.

"What can I do Katniss?" What did she need? He would give her anything, anything to help soothe the pain he saw in her eyes.

"I am just a little scared," Kat whispered.

"Scared of what?" He whispered back.

"That you are just being nice, that I am not good enough, that what happened to me is going to ruin everything, that you will get tired of me and all of my insecurities."

Katniss, he thought, you are so, so valuable. Peeta thought he could physically strangle the life out of the idiot who had made her feel this way.

"Katniss, can I tell you a story?"

She nodded.  
"One year ago, my family decided to make me transfer schools. I had gotten to know Delly pretty well through friends of my parents, but.. I was so furious that they had just made me change schools out of the middle of nowhere. I walked on campus, angry at the world, and then, in all your glory, you came around the corner, with Gale," he shuddered, but she laughed shakily, so he continued. "I figured that you were beyond pretty. Easily the most beautiful girl I had ever seen. And then, we had classes together. I didn't fall for you at first sight," he said, lowering his voice a little. "What really won me over, what snagged me, was your art."

She was breathing deeply, and murmured, "My art?" He smiled. She wanted to hear this.

"You were so good at every assignment that we did. I was so, so impressed." When he closed his eyes, he could see every piece see had worked on in his mind's eye. "I wanted to know the girl that could do such amazing artwork, and miracle of miracles, here I am."

"Miracle of miracles?" She scoffed and he could almost feel her rolling her eyes.

"Katniss, I know you have doubts. I am not a perfect guy, but at the very least I am sure that I want to date you. I know that you are smart, beautiful, witty, and so talented. I know that I am beyond lucky to get to spend this night alone with you. Most importantly, although I hope I am nice, you speaking your mind is not an inconvenience. I might get frustrated from time to time, but only because I want you to see all of the good there is in you. Anything you want to say to me, however many times you want to say it, I want to hear it all. I want to know **you** , not some girl out of Cosmo magazine. You are stunning and gorgeous, but your soul is just as stunning, just as breathtaking."

He sighed. "I just became the cheesiest guy in the world, didn't I? I swear I meant every word, even if it sounds so completely unoriginal."

Katniss chuckled a little and said, "Yeah, maybe. But for tonight at the very least, you are my cheesy guy. So.. I guess I will let this one pass."

She stayed against his shoulder until they got to the restaurant, and he pointed out his favorite places that he had to take her to as they drove past. She pointed out some things, showed interests in others, and Peeta, ever the diligent student, took great mental notes. He got out of the car at the restaurant and held the door open for her. The driver said that he would wait for them in the parking lot, giving Peeta a card to call for when they were ready to go to the movie theatre later.

Nàgè Shù, one of Peeta's favorite Chinese restaurants, had their table ready and Peeta pulled out Katniss's chair for her, then sat down himself.

Katniss, for one, could not believe that Peeta seemed so relaxed. For another thing, he looked... dashing. Man, his cheese was starting to rub off on her, but he was handsome tonight. The hostess looked at her a little snidely, then smiled widely at Peeta, who Katniss was pleased to note seemed not to notice the attention.

Then, of course, once they were seated, Peeta asked her if she had ever come here before. While Nàgè Shù was not a thousand dollar restaurant, she had come only once or twice before. She knew this to be the aftermath of a family who hated Chinese food, but also noticed once again that everything seemed more expensive with Peeta paying for it.

"What can I get for you to drink?" the overly nice woman asked Peeta.

"May I have a Coca-Cola please?" he asked, still looking at the menu.

"Of course." She begrudgingly turned to Katniss. "What would you like?" At her abrupt tone, Peeta looked up, then to the waitress, back to her, and then rolled his eyes. So he did notice.

"May I have a root-beer please?" The lady nodded and then left the table.

"What's her problem?" Peeta asked once she was safely away from the table. "Wasn't she being a little rude to you?"

"Well, maybe she thinks that I'm-" She couldn't even finish what she was saying before Peeta said, "Eh. Who cares what she thinks? I didn't say anything this time, because you could chop her in half if you wanted, I am sure, but.." He trailed off, and Katniss wasn't sure, but she thought she might see a little anger in his eyes.

They ordered their food, thankfully from a different staffer. Peeta laughed at all of her jokes and once again, she could simply not deny that she felt safe, here with him. Katniss knew that she was just as lucky to be with him, but from the compliments to giving her everything she needed before she could even ask, including calling over waitresses, Katniss felt... almost spoiled. How strange.

"So, Peeta, if you were invisible for one day, what would you do?" Katniss asked, having fun asking him whatever she wanted.

"Hmm. I mean, there is so much that you could do. I think I would just read for a day. I would go to the park, watch the people around me, sit under a shade tree, and just relax. I never feel like I have time to do that, you know? Just go somewhere peaceful and have a day with no agendas."

She laughed, "You are such a nerd."

"Hey!" he said, in a tone of mock-offense. "I represent that statement." He smiled so easily, that she felt herself nearly stop breathing. Dang, he was cute. "My turn!" he exclaimed, taking the upper hand.

"If you could meet anyone, in all the universes, who would you pick?" He leaned in eagerly, waiting for her answer.

She pondered silently on who she should pick. There were so many people that she could choose and love to talk to for an hour.

"Real or alternate reality?" she asked, trying to get a little more time.

"Real," he said, chuckling.

"I am stuck between Frieda Kahlo and Joan of Arc. Both visionaries, both unique."

"Want to flip a coin?" Peeta asked, the smile reaching his eyes.

"Sure, heads- I win, Tails- You lose."

They both laughed, when the greeter from earlier walked up.

"Here is the check, sir." She said, setting it in front of Peeta. Peeta said a quick thanks and shoved the card in the folder, trying to continue the conversation with Katniss.

"How about tails you win, heads, you lose. That seems a little more fair, don't you think?"

"Fine, but what do I get for winning?" Katniss asked, laughing a little. At that moment, the waiter nearby tripped a little, and before she knew it Peeta was standing in front of her, completely drenched. The waiter, completely freaked, but Peeta, of course, super nice guy, didn't seem to care at all. He turned to Katniss. "You okay?"

She nodded, speechless. He wiped his face and hands on a napkin or two that was handed to him by a nearby customer, then turned to Katniss saying, "You might not want to lean on me for a while," he winked, continuing, "I am a little drenched." He laughed and she tilted her head, in awe of just how nice he was.

The greeter came back and walked right up to Peeta, trying to dab his shirt with a towel or something. Peeta stepped away quickly, saying, "No, thanks. I'm fine."

The greeter insisted. "I am just trying to help."

Peeta seemed to shudder a little. "I am fine, truly." The greeter laid down the bill. Peeta signed, they left, and Katniss wondered why Peeta had been so sensitive.

As they left, Peeta called the driver to come to the door.

"Peeta, are you okay?" she asked, grabbing a napkin or two on the way out. She grabbed his hand, and slowly, began to dab a little at his neck, his arms, and where his shirt was the most wet. He seemed fine.

"Sorry. I overreacted in there. I don't like.. people touching me." Immediately, she dropped her hands and quickly, Peeta said, "You can touch me, Katniss. I love that. I know you, I like you. When you touch me, I feel this warmth in your actions. But earlier, when she was rude, or when she touched me without asking," Peeta said more softly, "it reminds me of my mother.

Suddenly, Katniss realized that his mother had hit him. She did not know when or how often, and she knew that his mother had done just as much damage with her words, but Katniss couldn't help but reach out, place her hand on his face, and stroke his cheek with her thumb. "I am so sorry, Peeta."

"See, Katniss?" He smiled a little weakly, "I know what it is like to hurt and have memories that feel like they haunt every day of your life." He chuckled, "I would hug you, but-" and then he gestured to his shirt. "I admire your strength, Katniss. You make me a better person."

The driver pulled up and Peeta opened the door for Katniss. Katniss began to see so much more of Peeta than she had before, saw his flaws, his doubts. Now, to her, he became so much more real and relatable. His flaws and her flaws didn't lower or raise them up on any scale. Rather, the closer they became, the more Katniss began to see that if the whole of Peeta was beautiful, perhaps the whole of Katniss was as well.


	21. Accustomed to Her Face

Chapter 21- Accustomed to Her Face

As they drove to the movie theatre, Kat rested against Peeta's shoulder, as he hummed in her ear.

She asked, "What movie are we going to see?" Katniss imagined that some romantic comedy was in order, but she wasn't sure since they had not bought the tickets together.

Peeta smiled. "So, they bought the tickets for us, ahead of time, but I have no idea. I suppose it is an adventure we will have to go on together." His moved his thumb, in tingling circles, on the top of her hand. She sat up suddenly, saying, "I suppose I should not lay on you the entire time. That seems a little.. I don't know. It just doesn't seem like proper first date etiquette."

Peeta laughed. "I don't want you to feel like you have to be prim and proper. You are gorgeous, and I LOVE that dress," he teased smiling. "But the girl I want to date is who you are on your own. I don't want the cut and edited version of you, Katniss."

He leaned over and kissed her, sincere and deep, then drew away a few moments later.

"Okay?"

Katniss had raised her finger to her lips, then shot her arm back down, slightly embarrassed. He smiled.

She smiled back and held out her hand, which he took in his.

"10 questions," Katniss said. "1. Movie snacks?"

"I have to have popcorn and a soda, but beyond that, I am flexible. I love sour snacks, especially the gummies."

"2. Favorite movie?"

"Uhh. I am not sure honestly. Right now, one of my favorites is Dead Poet Society."

"3. Do you talk during the movie?"

He snickered. "Only if you are okay with it, and even then, I just like making dumb jokes."

"4. Best part of the whole experience?"

He blushed a little. "I am addicted to those animated short stories that play before the new Disney movies."

She laughed a little. She thought that was really sweet. "5. Best seat in the joint?"

"Clearly, that is the middle middle."

"The what?"

"Middle seats at the middle of the theatre on the middle rows. The middle middle."

"Good choice. Though most teenage boys seem to like the back of the theatre." She gave him an appraising look and he said, "If you want me to make out with you in a theatre, you better choose a movie that I have already seen. This is a serious experience, Katniss. First time viewings are not meant for us to suck each others faces."

They both laughed and realized they had stopped in front of the theatre. Peeta let her get out first, grumbling about it the entire time, and they walked together up the steps, hand in hand still, to the ticket box. As they waited for the two couples in front of them to buy their tickets, Katniss continued her inquisition. "6. Given the choice between the close up screen with no people and the back of the theatre, with a bunch of people, which spot would you pick?"

"Easy. The front of the theatre. I would much rather suffer through a little pain in my neck than listen to half the movie and half the people kissing each other. Plus," he added, leaning in closer to whisper in her ear, "I prefer keeping you to myself." He straightened back up saying, "What can I say, I am selfish." He smirked.

She rolled her eyes and they moved forward, as the two couples at the front had been together.

"Hello. How can I help you?" the bored teenage and acne ridden boy asked from behind the glass barrier.

"We are picking up tickets for Mr. Mellark?"

The kid looked and Peeta seemed shocked when he was handed an envelope.

"Enjoy your evening." They stepped out of line as the next person took their place.

Peeta and Katniss stopped, curious to see the inside of the envelope.

Inside the envelope, a note said, "Please come to Theatre 6, Mr. Mellark, your film awaits you and your guests."

They went inside the theatre, first going to Theatre 6, as the note instructed. Peeta could feel Katniss giving him the stink eye, so he promised, "Remember, I said that I would not spend thousands of dollars on this evening. This Finnick guy clearly made no such promise." She sighed and he hoped that there were people in the theatre.

As they reached the theatre, an attendant came outside and said, "Mr. Mellark? Please follow me. As they walked inside, they noticed that it was completely empty and there was an assortment of candies already placed on a table in the middle of the theatre. Though Peeta knew this was not his style, and that he would pay this guy back someday, he had to admit that this guy had some style.

Katniss looked worried and Peeta took her face in his hands. "Babe, if you want, we can leave. But, I say we take advantage of tonight, and just let me worry about the rest. Okay?" She seemed a little comforted and they made their way to their seats.

As they sat, Katniss said, "So, I'm babe now?"

Peeta said, "I wasn't planning to say that. If thats weird, I can-"

Katniss cut him off saying, "No, it's okay. I like it, but I just had to ask." She blushed. "I have just never been called that before."

Peeta sang out, "I'veee gottt yooouuu, BABBBEEEE." She laughed so hard that she snorted and Peeta had never liked her more.

A few minutes later, the attendant returned and asked if they would like any concessions, which they had completely forgotten about in the face of having the movie theatre to themselves.

They ordered sodas and popcorn, then asked what the movie was that they were about to see. The usher paused, saying that they were about to watch the classic film, "My Fair Lady."

The attendant left and the lights began to dim. Peeta and Katniss settled into their seats, waiting for the opening credits.


	22. The Rain In Spain

**Thanks so much for the reviews, everyone! I love reading them at any and every point that you wish to write them. I love the feedback and I am glad that you enjoy the story.**

Chapter 22- The Rain in Spain...

For the first time in his life, Gale was more concerned for Madge than he was for Katniss. Madge seemed so concerned, so sure that something would go wrong while Peeta and Katniss were on their date, or that Katniss would say something completely idiotic and ruin everything. That, of course, was insane, given that the boy worshipped Katniss, so he found it unlikely that anything Katniss did would create a problem for Peeta.

They had ordered in, a mixture of several fast foods now laid out like a banquet in front of them.

Gale imagined that Katniss had forgotten to be ladylike and super girly at least three or four times throughout their date. He chuckled to himself and Prim asked what he was laughing about. "Well, I just don't really know how to picture Katniss being super girly. I know, on instinct that she must be trying to be." He snickered. "I just wish that I could be a fly on the wall tonight, that's all." Madge chuckled a little bit.

Peeta and Katniss watched the introduction to the movie, munching on popcorn and continuing questions until the movie was going to start.

"Okay. 7. Have you ever seen this movie before?" Katniss asked, looking at Peeta.

"Yeah, I watched it when I was little. It's one of my classical favorites. What about you?"

"No, I haven't seen it, so no spoilers." He laughed and she was happy for the hour that she had to be completely alone with him, just to get to know him better. "8. Do you sing along with musicals?"

"Generally, no. This one, maybe."

"9. Will you hate me if I don't like this movie?" She asked, smirking.

"Yeah. You found it. That would be the point where we would have to break up. It would be the same as if you didn't like Space Jam." He turned to her. "Wait-you have SEEN Space Jam, right?"

She nodded her confirmation. The credits were winding down, so she asked, "10. Do you want to get rid of me yet?"

She was joking, but when he turned to her, the look in his eyes was honest and fatally genuine.

"No. Probably never will be ready to get rid of you, so don't hold your breath."

She leaned forward to kiss his cheek, but he turned slightly, so her kiss landed on his lips. He responded quickly, kissing her soundly. When she backed away, he said, "I know I told you I have watched this movie before, but I didn't expect you to take advantage of it so soon."

Peeta looked at Katniss, and saw her turn bright red, her hand on her lips. So many other times tonight, she had looked gorgeous, but he would remember this forever. She was absolutely breathtaking. Tired of her? he thought. How could he ever be? Katniss was quiet with words, but her actions were deafening. She was gorgeous and brave, but humble, almost to a fault. She was intelligent and creative, but had never boasted about that even once. The girl was the poster girl of being the only one who really knew her that thought she didn't deserve everything.

He wondered if she realized that she had everything left ahead of her, a whole world waiting for her to explore it.

Mostly, he caught himself watching her as much as the movie. She loved Eliza (who didn't), but he was amazed at her reactions. Childlike wonder at the ball scene, laughter at the race, utterly furious when Eliza was throwing her slippers. He could tell what she felt, but he was dying to hear her opinions. Good thing that his ten questions were next. During the intermission break, she had talked to Peeta about anything but the movie. He had thought for a moment that she didn't like it. Instead, he had realized that she didn't want to spoil the experience. She didn't want him to slip up and tell her anything. As the credits began to roll, a smile on her face, Peeta stood and held out his hand. She took it, curiosity flaring in her eyes, and followed him down the steps to the middle aisle of the theatre. He spun her around and brought her close, saying, "Would you like to dance?"

Katniss nodded, so he began to dance with her, slowly. Her head rested on his shoulder and she hummed the music playing through the credits. The lights came up in the theatre and he stepped back, his hands still on her waist. "Are you ready?"

"My clutch is up there," Katniss said. Peeta nodded, climbed the steps, and grabbed her clutch. He walked back to her at an easy pace. "My lady," he said, holding out her clutch. Once she grabbed the clutch, he held out his arm, and she slipped her hand through the gap, curling it around his upper arm. They began to walk forward and he said, "Ten Questions. My Turn." She smiled and nodded, waiting for the first question.

"One. What is your favorite musical?"

Her eyes lit up. "Well, until a few moments ago, probably the Wizard of Oz."

"Wow. My Fair Lady sweeping Wizard of Oz out of the way- I'm impressed."

"I loved Eliza. She was never afraid to be her own woman. She held her own." Katniss smiled.

"Sounds like somebody else I know," he said, pointedly looking at her.

She chuckled. "Okay, perhaps I am a tad bit outspoken.." She batted her eyelashes at him, faking delicate girliness so well, he had to laugh.

"Perhaps," he said, smirking. "Second question. Who is your favorite Disney princess?"

Katniss looked at him, and for a few brief seconds, he wondered if she watched Disney movies. Surely, she did. Then, he remembered that she had mentioned them earlier and began to breathe a little more easily.

She gave him a stern look, saying, "Surely, you are not asking this of all questions? It's like asking what my favorite band is or what my favorite book was."

He laughed softly. "I need to know. Please?" He tried to give her a smolder, 99 percent sure that it would have no effect on her.

She paused a moment, a slight smile on her face. "Well, who do you expect to be my favorite?"

"Hey- whoa, whoa, whoa, fair maiden. It is MY TURN for the asking of the questions, your turn for the answering."

Her smile became a little more mischievous. "Maybe if you guess correctly, I will ... do something nice for you." God, she was drop dead sexy. Like, he had to remember how to breathe. It was so unfair. When he paused for a moment, a blush flaring on his cheeks, she took his hand as they walked out of the theatre. The warmth of her hand on his felt unbelievable. He knew that he was, well, unexperienced to put it mildly. But every time that she did anything like this, he immediately felt the need to sneak her into a dark room and kiss her until he couldn't breathe anymore. He took a deep breath and pulled himself back before he could start wildly fantasizing about anything.

"Well, you love a fierce woman. Who doesn't?" He gulped, thinking quick. "But she also has to be something else if you looked up to her. I don't think it is Mulan or Jasmine is your style. I wonder, then," he said, trying to make it through the list in his head."Could it be... Wait classic or modern? Can i ask that?"

"Nope." He saw her eyes flash up to his face as he said modern and he knew. He leaned in close saying, "I never knew that you liked Frozen. Anna, huh?"

She gasped. A light blush appeared on her cheeks. Their car pulled up, he opened the door, and they both got in, him realizing that he really didn't want this night to end.

The car drove away, streetlight after streetlight passing them by, the minutes flying by.

"Third question" he found himself saying softly. leaning in without telling himself to, "I have to ask. Can I.." He looked in her eyes, finding himself speaking even more softly. "Can I.." Suddenly, she closed the distance, both her hands wound into his hair. He felt like his life was on fire, glorious, raging fire. His hands moved, finding their way, one gripping her waist, the other around her back, pressing her closer.

Katniss was sure that this had easily been one of the best nights of her life.

He had been perfect, a saint. Then the moment she hinted at anything remotely.. devious, he blushed to the end of the world and back. He wouldn't hurt her. She knew that. She had also wanted to kiss him again for days, and and tonight had been some unique kind of torture. The more she watched him trying to impress her, every time he had taken her hand that night, and every time she had peeked at him during the movie, most of those times seeing him watching her.

So finally, knowing that he might never take the initiative, given the day that she had, she taken it. As they walked to the door, she took his hand, watching him smile in response and grip her hand tightly.

He opened the door, still holding her hand, and when they got in the car, he was trying to ask, leaning toward her, this longing in his eyes. "Can I?" he asked, hesitating. "Can I?" Before he could finish the question, she had closed the distance, her hands in his hair, her lips on his.

She was kissing him and he was kissing her back and she felt.. amazing. Better than she had in so long. This was always the way it was with him. His arms slipped around her and she never wanted it to stop.

He kissed her for a solid minute, before he broke away, breathing hard, smiling like Adonis. He looked so handsome tonight, she found herself thinking of ways to sneak away with him for just a little longer. She blushed thinking about it and heard him whisper, "My, my Miss Everdeen. What a night. I didn't know you found me so irrestible." He wiggled his eyebrows, trying to sound casual. He looked at her, though, unable to stop thinking about kissing her. "You know, personally, I would not mind kissing you for the rest of the night. I don't want to do anything that you don't want to do." He couldn't help but smile, even though he wanted to be sincere. She was just too amazing. How could he not smile?


	23. On the Street Where She Lives

Chapter 23- On The Street Where She Lives

 _He walked down the hallway, a hotel uniform on, prepared to end everything once and for all. Merely hours before, he had warned her, and then, as if to mock him, she had gone out with the boy. He would just have to show her that if she didn't want the people she loved to get hurt, she had better learn to do what he told her. She needed to listen._

Peeta, looking down at Katniss, could not believe his luck. To have spent the whole day with her, to have gone on a date with her, and to have kissed her again.. his brain could not handle the influx of joy.

 _He walked up to the door, knocking, sure that Katniss was his in the same way that he knew that the sky was blue. He had taken her, that day in that alley, to prove that she could never escape. She would always belong to him. To pretend otherwise was sheer foolishness, but she already knew that this boy couldn't love her the way that he did. He wouldn't be satisfied once he knew, because after all, who would want another man's scraps?_

Gale heard a knock at the door, kissed Madge on the cheek, and walked to answer it. When he looked through, he saw the hotel uniform, relaxed, and felt foolish for assuming this boy could have gotten this far. He looked back at Madge, asleep on the couch, with Prim, whose head was in Madge's lap. Love was rare.

Katniss jolted up, after resting against Peeta's shoulder, horrified, worried, and bewildered by the smoke she saw coming out of the windows of the hotel. A fire? She hoped it was a coincidence. Perhaps someone had simply set some curtains on fire. Perhaps it wasn't direct and intentional arson aimed at her, at her family. She felt Peeta's hand gripping her own, as they saw policemen, firefighters, and medical personnel swarming around the entrance. What had happened? Where were Gale, Prim, and Madge? How could she have left them? What kind of friend was she, to have left them while he was still out in the world? This was all her fault. She felt the walls closing in, a darkness threatening to consume her. She had been doing so well, but the fear that she had been pushing away all day finally overtook her and everything went black as she felt herself collapse.

 _I have often walked down this street before, he thought, but the pavement always stayed beneath my feet before._

 _Now,_

 _all at once,_

 _I am several stories high,_

 _knowing I am on the street where you live._


End file.
